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IN HIS OWN

TmMe. :

FREDERICK BARON CORVO

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THE LIBRARY

THE UNIVERSITY

OF CALIFORNIA

LOS ANGELES

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luilirrta'.-iiiimnil'u.mr-,-.

I Ifc/r,

Cc^ tu

IN HIS OWN
IMAGE

By FREDERICK BARON CORVO

JOHN LANE: THE BODLEY HEAD
LONDON y NEW YORK • MDCCCCI

All Rights Rtitrvtd

UNIVERSITY PRESS • JOHN WILSON
AND SON • CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A.

ni\

P 1 .A.

DIVO AMICO

DESIDERATISSIMO

D • D • D •

FRIDERICUS

A''^ Dio, Suo Gratia^ mi se mostra altrove,
Piu che 'n alcun leggiadro e mortal velo;
E quel sol a?no, perche '« quel si specchia.
Michelangelo Buonarroti. Sonn. LVJ.

Contents

spring

Page
I. About the Fantastical Fra Guilhelmo of

THE CaPPUCCINI 3

IJ. About the Holy Duchess and the Wicked

King 12

IIJ. About the Cheek of Fra Sebastiano of

THE CaPPUCCINI I5

IIIJ. About the Miraculous Fritter of Frat'

AGOSTINO of the CaPPUCCINI I9

V. About the Original Fritter of Sangiu-

SEPPE 26

VJ. Being an Epick of Sangiorgio, Protector

OF THE Kingdom 35

VIJ. Why THE Rose is Red 66

VIIJ. About the Witch's Head and Santignazio

OF Loyola 82

Vinj. About Sodom, Gomorrah, and the Two

Admirable Jesuits 97

X. About Some Kings 112

XJ. About Papa Ferretti and The Blest Here-

siARCH 119

XIJ. About the Love which is Desire and the

Love which is Divine 122

a. Why Cats and Dogs always Litigate . . 125

p. About Divinamore and the Maiden Anima . 130

X Contents

Summer

Page

XIIJ. About Doing Little, Lavishly .... 145

XIIIJ. About Doubles in General: and Sanve-

NANZIO AND SaNTAGAPITO, IN PARTICULAR l68

XV. About the Aforesaid, and Padre Dotto

Vagheggino, S. J 187

XVJ. About These Tales, the Key and Purga-
tory 207

XVIJ. About So.me Friends 228

XVIIJ. About the Penance of Paisalettrio . . 252

XVIIIJ. About Our Lady of Dreams 273

XX. About the Four Things Necessary . . . 295

XXJ. About the Preface of Fra Cherubino . 303

XXIJ. About the Insistence of Sangiuseppe . . 311

XXIIJ. About a Vegetable Purgatory 323

XXIIIJ. About What is Due to Contrition . . . 336

These Six Tales were printed in THE YELLOW BoOK
in 1895-6. // has been deemed advisable to include
them in this instalment : but it should be remembered
that they were related a year before the Spring and
Summer Sections.

I. About Sampietro and Sampaolo 347

IJ. About the Lilies of Sanluigi 354

IIJ. A Caprice of Some Cherubim 368

IIIJ. About Beata Beatrice and the Mamma of

Sampietro 378

V. About the Heresy of Fra Serafico .... 391
VJ. About One Way in which Christians Love

One Another 409

" Hie est quern legis,
tile quern requiris."

Mart.

Spring

" Prhnavera, giovetiiu delF anno:
Gioventu, pfimavera della vita. "

In His Own Image

About the Fantastical Fra Guilhelmo

OF THE CaPPUCCINI

I SAID that, at sunset, Toto would drive me
to Rome; for I intended to hear mass at
San Giorgio ad Velum Atireum in the morn-
ing, being the festival of England's Protector
Regni.

Toto conveyed the news to my boys in this
form, — that la sua eccellenza was going to adore
Sangiorgio in Rome, on the morrow, he being
the god who looked after my magnificent
country; and to Guido and Ercole was given
the charge of decorating the breakfast-table with
English roses, ready for my return.

We started after Ave Maria. This boy fancied
himself immensely, when officiating in an English
dog-cart; and he looked divinely smart in dark
blue, makroskeles, with tan gaiters buttoned.
That kind of blue, with Toto's kind of brown, is
fine. I learned the blend of him,

• • • .

On the main road I espied a significant cap-
puccino trudging along before us. Coming up

About the Fantastical Fra

to him, I recognised Frat' Agostino, and I asked
for the pleasure of giving him a Hft. He said he
would ride as far as L'Arricia ; so I took the reins,
and Toto bundled him into the machine, after-
wards climbing up behind, supercilious, and nos-
trils quivering. He did not admire cappuccini ;
and he loathed this one, whom he held to be
a sneak of sneaks for getting him into trouble
about a certain baggage called Fiammina. (She
was all that!) L don't blame Toto much. lean-
not. For, wherever we went, a parcel of hussies
buzzed about him, like hornets round honey;
and Toto was a human being, — a fact which it
is sometimes difficult to believe. But the circum-
stances of this particular affair drew from me a
flagellation so sound and solemn (all anglican
rites being duly observed) as to impress Frat'
Agostino, who was present on the occasion in an
official capacity, with the notion that we English
regarded the function as possessing something of
a sacramental nature — indeed, he spoke after-
wards of the twig as the outward and visible
vehicle of inward invisible grace ! Heptakaide-
ketes took the thrashing in his habitual sweet-
tempered way, and bore me no malice for
shedding his blood. He said that he knew
himself to have been wrong; anyone could see
that with half an eye : and, if he escaped punish-
ment, he would become a sinner of vast dimen-
sions as time went on ; and then there would
be flaming divels to whip him in ssecula. It

Guilhelmo of the Cappuccini

was far better as I made it. Naturally, he pre-
ferred to be flayed by me, because I was his
patron who wished him well into the bargain,
and never disgraced him before the youngsters.
But Frat' Agostino — well, he was cappuccino,
— antipaticissimo — and that was all about
that!

This friar was an anaemic little creature, with a
black beard, hollow chops, gorgonzola-coloured
fangs, a carrion breath, and a voice of brass-
After roaring the customary compliments, he
began to cover the floor of my dog-cart in a
phthisical manner and to give me the news of
the day. He said that he had been the round of
his patrons with a few salads from his garden ;
and, producing a green and frowsy crumple from
his bosom, he begged my acceptance of it, adding
that the larder of his convent was empty. At
once, I made the customary offering.

There is a part of the road between Velletrj
and Rome, where you turn up to Citta Lavinia,
which is said to be haunted by the horrible ap-
parition of a coach with headless driver and
headless steeds. While passing the spot, I in-
quired whether Frat' Agostino had ever seen
this spectre. He replied that he had not: and,
bitten with an itch of inane modernity, he tried
to raise himself in the regard of what he called
a fashionable young man (meaning me'), by
uttering ordinary ignorant scoffs at supernatural
exhibitions.

About the Fantastical Fra

" But, fraticello," I said ; " Fra Guilhelmo of
your own convent has seen the grisly thing, and
told me of it with his proper lips not two weeks
ago. He described it with minutest detail, also
his glorious triumph over his tremors; and I
always believe everything that a priest tells me,
on principle, you know."

" Oh ! — Fra Guilhelmo ! " — the cappuccino
chuckled ; " but we never believe him ! Why,
he 's the most fantastical liar, and the butt of our
community ! Haw-haw ! When I leave you, ask
Toto to tell you about Fra Guilhelmo and the
earthquake. I myself, on that subject, had better
hold my peace, lest I sin against charity ; but,
for Toto, it is another matter. (Sqwawk !) "

When we reached the shrine of Madonna, on
the right, before entering L'Arricia, Frat' Agos-
tino blessed us, and alighted, giving thanks for
his ride. Toto offered up the stale salad at the
shrine, pushing it through the grating; and he
climbed into the cart with the charming reflec-
tion that some poor old biddy might be glad to
think that Madonna had sent her a supper. As
we passed the church on the left, he asked leave
to go in, to say five Az'c Jl/arias, because he felt
as though he really needed them.

After leaving Albano, we drove silently for
some distance across the still Campagna. The
sun had set in a conflagration of yellow and violet
and yellow ; and now the moon arose, majestick,
magical, a monstrous pearl afloat on an olive and

Guilhelmo of the Cappuccini

primrose sea. It was a moment of romance. I
felt that the slow recitative of Toto's admirable
counter-tenor would provide a backbone for my
emotions.

I said, " Break silence, Toto ; " and I rolled a
cigarette. I was about to enjoy.

The lad looked straight between the ears of
Amfitrite. (Amfitrite is the white mare.)

" In obedience to the command of Frat' Agos-
tino of the Cappuccini, I will recite the history of
Fra Guilhelmo of the same convent.

" La sua eccellenza will remember the little
earthquake which happened here, very early in
the morning, a few weeks ago ; and of course you
know that earthquakes have sharp edges. I
mean, the earth will quake on this side of the
road, but not on that. I mean, that they do not
happen all over the world at the same time.
Here, the ground will shake : there, no. It has
an edge I say, this earthquake; and la sua
eccellenza will know exactly what is necessary
to be understood. Well, then ! This earthquake
had a sharp edge : and, as it moved along under
the convent of cappuccini, the edge was in the
middle; that is to say, the building, which con-
tains the cells of the frati, was shaken very
sharply, but the quire of the church, which is at
the other end, was not shaken at all.

" It was six o'clock in the morning, when the
Padre Eterno remembered that Fra Guilhelmo
deserved a good shaking; and, at that moment,

About the Fantastical Fra

the friar sat at the table in his cell, writing the
lecture which he was to read before his novices
that same day ; for, you know, he is the novice-
master, and blessed am I who am not one of his
novices. His crucifix hung upon the wall before
him ; and Fra Guilhelmo, having had his eyes
made badly by his parents, pored over his writing
with his head close to the Feet of II Santissimo
Salvatore. You have seen Fra Guilhelmo,
sir?

" The other frati were singing office in the quire ;
a few novices had been left to sweep the stairs;
and, just as two of these had reached the door
of Fra Guilhelmo, suddenly Domeniddio shook
the ground.

" The crucifix, of which I told you, swang out-
ward from the wall : Fra Guilhelmo felt a sort of
heave, and took a tap on the forehead at the same
time. As he started, and raised his head, again
the earth quivered, and the crucifix swang towards
him, as before.

" Fra Guilhelmo became a jelly. He leaped to
his feet. He was mad with terror. But, in an in-
stant, he had a tale all ready and complete. He
can always explain. No; I do not know who
provides his explanations. Not his angel-guar-
dian : and of that I am most sure : but never yet
has Fra Guilhelmo been caught ignorant of
causes. Ah well ! Out he pranced into the cor-
ridor, putting on his spectacles, his heart fat with
fright; and behold two fearful novices standing

Guilhelmo of the Cappuccini

close by a window, as any decent person would
be standing during an earthquake.^

" Fra Guilhelmo remembered that much is due
to the dignity of a novice-master ; and, approach-
ing the lads with a majestick air, he said, ' Re-
joice, rejoice, my children ; for I have just spat
upon and defied Sathanas, who assaulted me,
being enraged at the damage which I shall do
him with my lecture this forenoon.' Then he
made them enter his cell, continuing, * Mark
well, my children, what I say, that you may learn
to withstand the fiery darts of the Wicked One,
as I have done this day, by the Grace of God,
the intercession of La Sua Madre Immacolata,
and the assistance of Beato Fra Francesco '
(who has no more to do with cappuccini, sir, than
has Amfitrite, except, perhaps, to weep over
them). The friar went further. ' I was sitting
on my stool, preparing my lecture; and I had
just written down a spiritual maxim which, when
exemplified in the spirit of holy obedience, by
you, my children, for whose edification it is in-
tended, will form an effectual defence against the
attacks with which the foul fiend our enemy rav-
ages the citadel of your chastity. Enraged at

1 Decent persons, of whom Toto Maidalchini is the chief,
argue thus : if the earthquake be severe, the roof, floors, and
interior walls, being the weakest parts of a house, will fall first
If the earthquake be pernicious, why then all will go. But the
outside walls will stand longest, and there may be a foothold
there. So decent persons rush to an outside wall, ;'. e., one with
a window in it, as being safest.

About the Fantastical Fra

this impregnable bulwark erected by me, between
your young souls and his infernal onset, Sathanas
rushed from the bowels of the earth up the inside
of my wall ; and, amid sparks of fire and the
crackle of thunder, he dashed my crucifix into
my face, intending to spill my brains over my
writing, so spoiling my lecture : and this I have
seen him do twice.'

" Don't laugh, sir ! Keep it in, till I have told
you about the novices.

" Those miserables were frightened out of their
wits ; for, indeed, Fra Guilhelmo can be most
terrifying. One stood speechless, staring at the
crucifix. The other took him by the ear, putting
him outside the door, still frozen with horror :
then, returning, all in a moment, he kneeled down
by Fra Guilhelmo; and, beginning Confiteor Deo
Ornnipotenti, without any more ado, he made a
general confession of all the sins which he had
ever committed, from the creation of the world
until the end of time. While this went on, the
other novice recovered his senses, and made
several attempts to enter the cell, wishing also to
confess ; and confess he did, as soon as the first
was shriven.

" Not till then was Fra Guilhelmo free to publish
his exploit; but the other frati, having been in
the quire where the earthquake did not pass, and
also, having had some experience of Fra Guil-
helmo's improvisations, laughed at him, and were
inclined to scoff; indeed, the Fra Guardiano

Guilhelmo of the Cappuccini

talked about giving him a penance for gammon-
ing his brethren with childish fables, and called
him a cock-brained beast. But when Fra Guil-
helmo brought the two novices to swear that
they had felt the convent shaken by Sathanas
his rage, this Guardiano, who is the hard mean
vulgar bit of dirt called Fra Sebastiano, began to
think that he might be doing an injustice to Fra
Guilhelmo. But several masses were waiting to
be said, and there was no time for many words
just then.

" However, when that Fra Guardiano had
finished his duty at the altar of Santantonio, the
widow of the son of Ricardo stopped him to
inquire whether any damage had been done to
the convent by the earthquake which, she said,
had tossed her out of her bed just in time for
mass.

" And so the mystery of the conflicts between
Sathanas and Fra Guilhelmo was laid bare, to the
amusement of the peoples, the nations, and the
tongues."

About the Holy Duchess

About the Holy Duchess and the Wicked

King

HERE Toto drew up at a lonely place
where the road was rather narrow.
The sky was of that dark luciferous
blue, cold, vast, profound, spangled with pale stars,
which you can only get on the Roman Campagna,
late in spring. It was chilly, and I asked Toto
why he stayed.

" But, sir, don't you know that this is the place
where la santa signora duchessa, iji requiescat
in pace, refused a salutation to the Wicked
King.

" Bomba was his name, a fiend from hell, stained
red with women's blood and gangrened with the
salt of tortured murdered children's tears. Yet
he was the friend of Papa Ferretti, and it is hard
to understand why the Santo Padre should have
a were- wolf for His friend.

" In the war-time my father often drove la santa
signora duchessa along this very road, for there
was no iron road then ; and often they met that
king coming to his camp from Rome.

" When my father saw the royal outriders he
would draw up the carriage at the roadside and

and the Wicked King

bare his head ; and if there were any gentlemen
in the carriage with la santa donna, her hus-
band, or her sons, they would alight, and stand,
holding their hats in their hands until that
king had passed. But la santa signora du-
chessa was proud and brave, and she never let
it be supposed that she was aware of any kings
passing along that road, for she glanced high,
and her face was as hard as though it were cut
in cameo.

" That fiend marked her beauty and her
haughtiness, and one day, at this very place, he
stopped his chariot, and he bowed to la santa
donna, looking straight in her face. She did not
move an eyelash.

" Then that king stood up in his chariot, and
bowed to her a second time, holding his hat in
his hand.

" Sir, then, la santa signora duchessa, looking
disdainfully into his very eyes, put up her para-
sol, and held it between her holy face and the
face of the wicked king.

" And Bomba went green with rage. He cursed
his coachman for stopping, though he himself
had ordered so. And he flung back on his
cushions and was driven away.

" My father always stopped here, after that, to
say his Gloria Patrj twelve times in honour of a
brave and noble lady who disdained a wicked
king. But she was English, as you know, sir,
therefore she had no fear.

Holy Duchess and Wicked King

"ijl May our Lord grant her that cool place for
which she always yearned.

" And, sir, I have said my Gloria Patrj twelve
times while you were looking at the stars."

He chirruped to the mare, and on we flew.

The Cheek of Fra Sebastiano

About the Cheek of Fra Sebastiano of

THE CaPPUCCINI

" '^ T'OU do not love cappuccini, Toto?" I
^^ said.

J. " Well, sir, to tell the blind and naked
truth, I prefer other Religions. Of course there
must be some good cappuccini, for there are
always some good people everywhere. I am
sorry for them for being cappuccini ; but it is
not their fault; for, more often than enough, one
cannot help oneself. But it does surprise me
that there should be so many unenlightened per-
sons collected together in this one convent."

I asked why he had called the Guardiano a
hard mean vulgar bit of dirt?

" For an exquisite reason, sir. Listen? Last
summer, behold an artigiano who came seeking
work. You know that these cappuccini have
a little hill behind their convent, with the Via
Crucis along a winding path ; and at the summit,
a large Calvary of bronze, which, they pretend,
can be seen from a distance of fifteen miles.

" The artigiano discovered this bronze to be
rotting away, the surface having been left with-
out protection; and the damp air had bitten

About the Cheek of Fra

it with a kind of rust, grey-green, — a very serious
matter.

" To the Fra Guardiano, he explained the
damage, saying, that, for preserving the piece, it
would be necessary to clean off all the rust, using
a very virtuose lotion ; and next, to polish the
bronze till it shone like the nimbus of San
Michele Arcangiolo. Also, to keep it like that,
he said it must be well rubbed with an oily rag
once a week until the consummation of the
world. Lastly, he offered to do the work with
his own hands, asking, in return, for food and
lodging and spiritual direction as long as he
should be employed by the convent ; but for
no money, for he despised it; and, moreover,
the work was a pious one which would gain him
the good graces of his angel-guardian; and, at
the time, he had the humour to amuse himself in
that way.

" The Fra Guardiano smelt advantage in the
acceptance of this offer. He jumped at it, and
closed a bargain, telling the Signor Caio to
collect his tools ; also, to come to the convent
at Ave Maria of the next day, when he should
be lodged in the guest-house.

" Early on the morning after, Fra Sebastiano
came with impudence to this artigiano, saying
that he had been thinking, and he had remem-
bered that there were several strong novices in
his convent who could do the work, supposing
that they knew the way: and this cappuccino

Sebastiano of the Cappuccini

with his face of brass was not ashamed to ask
the Signor Caio for the secrets of his handicraft
as a free gift, that is to say, of the sovereign
lotion which would clear the bronze Calvary of
decay. It was a case of a rich man — rich by
beggary — robbing a poor man who earned a
living with his hands and brain."

Toto snorted, and cracked the whip viciously.

" Well," I said, " and what did Signor Caio
do?"

" Do, sir? Why he did what you would ex-
pect of a man of uona gente. He laughed
with open scorn in the face of that wretched
cappuccino ; and then he wrote down for Fra
Sebastiano, very carefully, instructions for the
making of that very virtuose lotion ; also he
wrote full and exact direction for completing
the whole work, so that not even a clumsy boor
of a novice could make a mistake by any chance.
Yes, to that Guardiano asking, he freely gave
the means of breaking his bargain ; and then
he shook off the dust of his feet at him, and
retired to seek work in another place, and of
honest men."

" But do you mean to tell me that your cap-
puccino used the knowledge gained in this dis-
graceful manner?" I asked.

" Of course he did, sir. He has not a fine

conscience, he knows nothing of honour; he will

buy, sell, bargain, and cheat, like any Hebrew
2 17

The Cheek of Fra Sebastiano

- ■ --^ ■ ■ — ■ —

grocer: he is cappuccino, priest of God, and I
call him a hard mean vulgar bit of dirt. Luckily-
all cappuccini are not of his species. Generally
they are lumps of clown, like Fra Guilhelmo
and Frat' Agostino?"

" Hallo," I said, " Fra Guilhelmo I can under-
stand, but why do you bring in Frat' Agostino?"

Frat' Agostino of the Cappuccini

iiij

About the Miraculous Fritter of Frat'
Agostino of the Cappuccini

" "W ^ TELL, sir, they are as like as two little
%/%/ drops of water, those two. Let me
▼ ▼ offer another story to la sua eccel-
lenza, that it may be seen whether I err in say-
ing * lumps of clown,' or no.

" On the festa of Sangiuseppe, they were to
have fritters for dinner in Frat' Agostino's con-
vent, where there is a custom for all to go
kitchen-wards when the brother cook begins to
fry the batter; and, when one side of the fritter
has been gilded,' each friar takes the pan, and
flings its contents into the air to turn it, and
catches it deftly on the other side. If they are
clumsy or knotty-fingered, the fritter falls to the
floor, and then they have to eat it all gritty and
slimy. Oh, it is good sport to see them, I do
assure you, sir !

" Well, and soon it came to Frat' Agostino's
turn ; and, because his sleeves were tight, not
being Franciscan sleeves, you know, or perhaps
for another reason, — while the frati all stood
round, Frat' Agostino made a mess of his fritter.

About the Miraculous Fritter of

" These shrimps of men ahvays wish to do
gigantic things ; and Frat' Agostino wanted to
hurl his fritter higher than any other friar, so he
seized the pan which held the half-fried batter,
and gave a tremendous heave. Everybody saw
the batter in the pan ; and then all eyes flashed
upward to the vaulted roof to see it fly. Cer-
tainly, the fritter left the pan, and Frat' Agostino
gripped the handle, and waited.

"Well, he waited, and everybody waited; but
the fritter went neither up nor down. It only
went.

" There was no longer any fritter.

" After an interval, the frati lowered their eyes
from the roof; and there stood Frat' Agostino
staring upward, resembling a grotesk. But
there was no fritter. They turned the kitchen
topsy-turvy. Such a garbuglio was never seen.
The fritter of Frat' Agostino had disappeared.

" Oh, it was a miracle, without a doubt ; and,
what was more, that precious Fra Guilhelmo had
seen it done.

" ' My brethren,' he exclaimed ; ' give thanks
unto the Signor Iddio, to the Stella del Mattino,
and to Beato Fra Francesco; for this community
has merited a vision of the gods ; and to me, most
wretched and yet most favoured sinner that I
am, is it given to unfold the marvel. You all
have seen what a perfect fritter had fallen to the
lot of Frat' Agostino ; the one side creamy,
white, and luscious, the other delicate, crisp,

Frat' Agostino of the Cappuccini

golden, and dripping with fat oil ! Far too fine
a fritter for a miserable mortal man dwelling in
a vale of sin and sorrow ! Such ambrosial food
is fitted only for the gods on high ! Therefore,
when Frat' Agostino tossed it to the stars, as an
oblation having a sweet savour, the eyes of my
soul were opened, and I saw the Direttore della
Sacra Famiglia, the Scudo Potentissimo per i
difensori della Chiesa di Cristo, the Gran Pa-
triarca Sangiuseppe, sitting in sadness on his
throne, without a fritter for his festa, — he, the
original inventor of fritters, too ! ' "

" Stop, Toto ! " I cried. " Do you say that
Sangiuseppe invented fritters? "

" Patience, sir; and presently I will make the
statement good. But now Fra Guilhelmo con-
tinues, * With one wink of his august eyelid,
Sangiuseppe invited the attention of San Gabriele
Arcangiolo to that paragon of fritters. And, as
it soared aloft from Frat' Agostino's pan, the
tremendous Archangel of the Annunciation
swooped, and seized, and bore it triumphantly
to Sangiuseppe in paradise. O fortunate fritter !
How blissful is your lot ! Snatched from all the
miseries of this wicked world, to rest, for end-
less ages, immutable, inviolate, unutterably serene,
upon the bosom of Sangiuseppe ! ' "

" This beats all," I said. " Fancy making out
that Sangiuseppe is dyspeptick ! "

*' Ah, I do not know what dyspeptick is, unless
it means imcertain in the temper ; and every one

About the Miraculous Fritter of

knows how difficult it is to do business with
Sangiuseppe.

" Well ; then the Fra Guardiano called Fra
Guilhelmo a bubbolone, and put an eight days'
silence on him: but the fact remained that the
fritter was gone, no one knew where ; so they
cooked another, and went to dinner in the refec-
tory.

" I need not say that Frat' Agostino felt very
much elation, giving himself the airs of a grocer's
wife on a holiday of obligation. It was not every
friar who could do such a trick with a fritter as
he had done, and before a whole convent, too !
So, though he was absolutely ignorantly innocent,
nor believed the rubbish vomited by Fra Guil-
helmo, still, all the same, he looked upon himself
as being something of a marvel ; and he did not
omit to let the other frati know it.

" When these cappuccini had devoured their
food, they went to make their Visit to II San-
tissimo in the church. While leaving the refec-
tory, Frat' Agostino had the misfortune to break
a plate, walking with his nose cocked high, and
sweeping the end table with his cord. He
wears boots, you know ; not sandals like a real
friar: and so he stamped the plate to pieces.
He had to pick them up again, which made him
late in church. After Visit, Chapter; and, when
all were seated, Frat' Agostino went on his knees
in the middle of the room, and confessed in pub-
lick his disgrazia, exhibiting the broken plate.

Frat' Agostino of the Cappuccini

" Fra Sebastiano was very pleased to have the
opportunity of taking this friar down a peg or
two, especially at a time when he was so puffed
with pride ; and, after condemning him, in the
usual way, to wear the sherds of broken pottery
on a string around his neck for four and twenty
hours, and to beg his next three meals from his
brethren, — from each plate a scrap of egg, or
fish-skin, or stalks of green, or cheese-rind, — he
added the command, on holy obedience, that
Frat' Agostino should lie prostrate on his face,
while the community enjoyed its half-hour of
recreation.

" Frat' Agostino stretched out his arms and legs,
flung himself forward on the floor, flat; — and
howled.

" It was an awful howl.

" Next, he wriggled his legs, and twitched his
arms, and scrabbled with his fingers in the dust.

" You could not see his face ; for the big stiff
capperuccio of his habit, which generally hangs
down the back, had flopped up and covered his
head. But, from under the brown hood, there
came continually, a moan, a squeak, and a howl,
a moan, a squeak, and a howl ; and always the
arms and legs kept squirming.

" Fra Guardiano, thinking this to be a display
of naughty temper, began to speak severely, bid-
ding Frat' Agostino to behave himself. But,
seeing that that abased friar continued to emit
unearthly noises, and to welter in the folds of his

About the Miraculous Fritter of

gown, somebody suggested that it might be a fit
which troubled him. Then Fra Guardiano went
to him, and stirred him with his foot, saying
sharply, ' Frat' Agostino, — Frat' Agostino ! '

" Instantly the noises ceased ; and Frat' Agostino
tempestuously stuttered, * ConfiteorDeoomnipoteut-
ibeataeMariaesempevvirginibeatoMichaeliarchang-
elobeatoJoJianniBaptistae-e-e-e-e-e-sa n ctisapostolis-
PetroetPauloomnibiissanctisettibipaterqiiiapeccavi-
nimiscogitationeverboetoperemeaculpameaculpatnea
niaximaciilpa-a-a-a-a-a — oh, yes — and since my
last confession, father, I have fallen into the sin
of pride — u-p6pepe — I 'm damned, I am, — yes
I'm damned if I'm not — I was proud because
San Gabriele Arcangiolo took my fritter — it was
mine — mine — mine — iiiiiaf! — I'll never look
at another till I 'm dead — I wish with all my
heart I 'd never seen one — o-dododododo ! —
But I was proud, father — yes, proud as Lucifer
— aaah ! And I'm found, out — found out. O
Dio mio — Dio mio — and I 'm punished — yes,
I'm punished — with an accursed incubus who
is sent to clutch my flesh — ahi-ahi-ahi ! — O
father, behold me damned forever — a-u — a-u —
a-u — a-u — a-u — and here 's a dead devil —
err^ erre erre — oh, like ice — a-riding on my
neck — '

"The frati sat aghast, and sweat poured down
their faces till their beards dripped, — dripped
upon the floor, sir; for surely the idea of a dead
devil is altogether horrid !

Frat' Agostino of the Cappuccini

" The Fra Guardiano, also, had much fear ; but
when he had blessed himself very fervently indeed
with an entirely opulent sign of the cross, he
took hold of Frat' Agostino, and pulled him up
from the ground.

" And, lo ! a nasty — cold — flabby — fritter —
sticking to the nape of his neck.

" Then it was seen how, in endeavouring to fling
his fritter higher than any other friar, Frat' Agos-
tino had only tossed it over his head, into his own
gaping capperuccio, where, of course, no one had
ever thought of searching for it."

About the Original Fritter

About the Original Fritter of San
Giuseppe

I LAUGHED heartily. It is a curious thing
that the very funniest tales in all the world
should be those which concern holy per-
sons and holy things, — the clergy, for example.

The humour of seculars has a narrow range.
It can be, and has been, reduced to a handful of
simple formulae. But there is a spontaneity,
an illimitable variety in ecclesiastical stories, to
which I respectfully direct the attention of my
unknown colleagues of the quill. I rigidly ex-
clude, however, narratives of a certain brand,
which are invented by the class of clergy techni-
cally designated " holy men," and recited, with
the nuts, at clerical dinner-tables.

The mind of the clerick is — and thanks be
to all gods for that same — a cramped and un-
cultured one. Its operations are concentrated
upon one sole point, viz., the salvation of souls
in general, and of its own in particular. Hence
the gyrations of clergy of the calibre of PVa
Guilhelmo and of Frat' Agostino (who represent
a proportion of their profession, and who, ap-
parently (but, I am sure, ignorantly), take delight

of Sangiuseppe

in bringing ridicule and disrepute upon the most
respectable traditions) are as amusing to the
English connoisseur (I do not say British, be-
cause I want to exclude Kelts, and to include
my English cousins of America) as the anticks
of any other foreigner.

Yes ! There you have it ! The clergy (of
whom I am, in private life, the least) are for- ^
eigners. They belong to a kingdom not of this
world. And, as foreigners, I find them ex-
tremely diverting.

But I reminded Toto of his assertion that
Sangiuseppe was the inventor of fritters.

" Yes, sir; and indeed he was.

" Now there was Madonnina, — oh, but beauti-
ful beyond my power to tell, just like an evening
lily, with truthful, peacock-purple eyes, and shin-
ing hair coloured like a field of rye at harvest-
time, and being but fourteen year^ and three
months old. Her parents, Sangioacchino and
Santanna, had betrothed her to Sangiuseppe,
who was grave and in his prime ; because his
staff had bloomed with almond-blossoms, showing
that the Padre Eterno looked on him with favour.

" On a night in spring, but earlier in the year
than this, Madonnina went to the well in the
lily-garden ; and, as she went, the flowers bowed
down to break their hearts in perfume, and to
kiss her little feet.

" Stars gleamed in the water. All was very
still.

About the Original Fritter

" Madonnina was seated on the marble steps.
She was making her meditation.

" Presently, a gentle breath stirred. Roses and
violets offered odours in their rustling petals.

■ • • • •

" Greatest angels came into the garden ; and
■c they kneeled before their queen.

" There was San Gabriele Arcangiolo like an
arcidiacono, all in silver; huge, and white, and
young with silver hair.

" There was San Rafaele Arcangiolo like a
pilgrim, with his staff and fish.

" There was San Michele Arcangiolo like a
warrior; and his armour was all gold.

" The first of these archangels held a sceptre,
like a lily of blue gems. The others bore a
cushion, with a lily-diadem of pearls.

" You can see that cloudy whiteness like milk
across the sky? Well, sir; that is the army of
angels, far away. But, on this night of which
I speak, it reached right down to the earth as
well, millions upon millions, all in white; some
carrying the stars in lanthorns; and some with
arciliuti and quinterne for a serenade. They
kneeled, from earth to heaven, behind the Santi
Arcangioli, Gabriele, Rafaele, and Michele.

" And, to the first, Madonnina said, ' O arch-
angel, what is your name? '

" He answered, ' Gabriele is my name ; and I
come on the part of the Padre Eterno.' Then,

of S

angiuseppe

San Gabriele Arcangiolo said, ' Ave, Maria
gratia plena, Dominiis tecum, benedicta tii in
miilieribiis, et benedictus Fructiis ventris tui,
Jhes?ts : ' as the Santo Spirito had taught him
in paradise.

" And the angels sang in chorus, very, very
low, * Ave — Ave — Ave — '

" Madonnina trembled, being only a little girl;
but she was wise — so wise; and nothing did
she say.

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo whispered, ' O Virgo
virginum, have no fear; for the Padre Eterno
loves you well. And I am to tell you that, if
you will, you shall be made the Mother of
Cristo Liberatore. His name will be Gesu :
He is the Son of the Padre Altissimo : and He
is King in saecula saeculorum : amen.'

" Madonnina desired to do the Will of the
Padre Eterno above all things : but she was a
girl : and she wanted to know. She said to San
Gabriele Arcangiolo, ' But I am a maid ; and
Sangiuseppe has but now betrothed me.'

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo answered, * Ma-
donna, the Santo Spirito will embrace you with
His Power, and you shall be Madre di Dio e
sempre Vergine. O Maria Santissima, think of
the Might of the Padre Onnipotente, Who built
the world, and of Whose wonders there is no
end. In proof of this, know that your cousin,
Santelisabetta, has conceived in her old age;
and, in three months' time, she will bear San-

About the Original Fritter

giambattista, to be the prophet of that Son
Whom my Sovereign wills to have of you.'

" At this, the gracious Madonnina gave con-
sent; and a gentle Dove, gold-feathered and hav-
ing silver wings, flew down from paradise, and
nestled in her snow-pure breast.

"Then, San Rafaele Arcangiolo and San
Michele Arcangiolo crowned her Regina Angel-
orum, with the lily diadem of pearls.

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo invested her with
the sceptre resembling a lily of blue gems.

" The marble steps of the well became her
throne.

" The rose-bush was her baldaquin.

And angels kissed the violets before her little

feet.

"When this embassage had returned to para-
dise, Madonnina gave thanks to the Padre Eterno
for His Grace, and made an oblation of herself,
lifting up holy hands. Then she went to visit
her cousin, Santelisabetta; for she wished to
talk, as ladies do, concerning the admirable
words of San Gabriele Arcangiolo.

" Santelisabetta lived next to the church, in a
little town on the hills; and, when Madonnina,
bearing her Divine Burthen, entered the house,
the six-months child, which Santelisabetta had
within her, kneeled down and adored II Santis-
simo Salvatore. So Santelisabetta knew, in that
moment, that the Madre di Dio and II Santis-

of Sangiuseppe

simo Bambino were there ; therefore she did not
salute Madonnina in the fashion of cousins, but
she kneeled upon the threshold, saying her ' Ave
Maria — and what honour — and what conde-
scension to a poor sinner like I am ! '

" Madonnina had no pride. She could not have,
Tota pidcJira es, arnica mea, et macula non est in
te. She sang Magnificat Anima Mea Domiytum ;
and the two mothers, the old and the young,
each wept in the other's arms for joy."

•

Toto was silent for some minutes.

I saw the lights of Rome along the road.
"What about the fritters?" I said.

" Yes, sir ; the fritters. Well, Santelisabetta's
baby was born at midsummer, and they called
him Sangiambattista. And, six months after, it
was Christmas; and then Cristo Liberatore
deigned to descend into the world.

" Soon, Santelisabetta brought her son to wor-
ship the Son of the Santissima Vergine, at the
house of Sangiuseppe, who was the Protector of
the Madonnina and of II Santissimo Bambino,
he being a joiner by trade.

" Santelisabetta and Sangiambattista arrived at
about nine of the clock, and worshipped until
ten ; and, afterwards, the babies played, and the
two mothers engaged in holy conversation.

" Now you know, sir, that ladies talk unceas-
ingly, without feeling tired, or thinking how the

About the Original Fritter

hours slip by. So when eleven o'clock came,
and the Madonnina did not call Sangiuseppe to
his dinner, he remembered that she had her
cousin with her, and perhaps that would make
her a little late. Therefore he went on with his
work.

" When twelve o'clock came, the church-bell
rang; and he said his Ave Maria; and then he
took the liberty of peeping into the house.

"There sat Madonnina and Santelisabetta, talk-
ing — talking.

" ' Ah well,' Sangiuseppe thought ; ' she does n't
see her cousin every day, and it will be a change
for her.' And the good man returned to his
bench.

"At one o'clock, he was faint with hunger;
also, ready for his siesta ; and he took another
peep. There was no sign of dinner; and con-
tinually the ladies talked.

" Sangiuseppe would not intrude upon Madonna
for all the world. His business was to take care
of her, not to worry her. So he hunted about the
kitchen to see whether he could find anything to
eat; and the first thing to catch his eye was a
pudding, incomplete, but evidently meant for
him, in honour of his festa. Madonnina had
whipped eggs, and put them in a bowl with
flour, and salt, and cream; and there they
stood.

" Sangiuseppe carried that bowl into his work-
shop, and began to sup the pudding with a spoon.

of Sangiuseppe

But there was something wrong with it. To begin
with, it was icy cold, never having seen the fire ;
and Sangiuseppe knew not how to cook it.

" A buon cavaher non manca lancia, and a god
is not the person to despair when in a difficulty.
Sangiuseppe at once put on his thinking cap.
Here he was, in his workshop, with a mess that
cried to be cooked. He could not go back into
the house with it, in case the creaking of his new
shoes might disturb Madonnina and her guest.
He looked about him for a little while; and, at
last, he saw what he would do.

" There was a fine wide shovel belonging to the
stove where he heated his glue. He cleaned it
very carefully with fresh shavings. Then he
took the shavings and some chips, and made a
bright little fire between some stones, outside the
door of his workshop. He crept round to the
oil-cask, and filled his shovel with fresh oil; and,
then, he sat down on a block of wood before his
fire, having the shovel in his left hand, and the
bowl of batter in his right.

" First, he held the shovel on the fire, till the oil
bubbled and boiled ; next, he poured the batter
into the shovel; and, when it was gilded on
one side, he turned it over with a clean splinter.
Last of all, he held the world's first fritter in the
pan with another clean splinter, drained off the
oil into the grass, stamped out the fire with care,
and, lo, a delicious fritter, gold, and crisp, and
succulent, to reward his pains !
3 33

Original Fritter of Sanguiseppe

" That is why I say that Sangiuseppe invented
fritters ; and, also, that is why all the world
honours him by eating fritters on his festa."

We swept up to the Gate of St. John.

Here, I took the reins. I never could get
that boy to learn short cuts through the city.
We talked through Merulana ; but when I
branched to the left before Santa Maria Maggiore,
there was silence, until we reached my lair on
Banchi Vecchi.

After supper, and writing up my notes, I tried
a new huqa, a lovely thing sent from Smyrna by

Biasio C . It was sweet, so long as I eyed it ;

but when I began to read the papers, Toto had
to squat by the bowl, with a scaldino, to keep it
lighted.

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio, Protector
OF THE Kingdom

THE next morning, at nine, we were at
San Giorgio ad Velum Aiireum.
Among the herbs on the floor, there
was an unusual quantity of rosemary and thyme;
and the scent was delicious. I brought an arm-
full of pure primroses, to scatter round the altar of
Sangiorgio. I showed to Toto the bulla, tied on
the baldaquin of the basilican altar, without
which no priest, save the Santo Padre, may offi-
ciate there. The eunuchs of the papal quire
misbehaved, as usual, in a box on the epistle-
side. What an annoying mass it was ! Just a
series of florid soli, during which the disengaged
singers sat and chatted at the back of their
tribune, took snuff, and apparently made up their
betting books, while the conductor smacked time
with a roll of music. At the beginning of Gloria
in excelsis Deo, a priest came from the sacristy to
say a low mass at the altar of Sangiorgio: and,
in his wake, we promptly skipped. Here, we
worshipped the relicks, — most admirable relicks,
— the head of the lance of Sangiorgio, a large
piece of red silk from the cross of his pennon,

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

and his veritable skull ; the last having a facial
angle as undoubtedly as Greek as that of the Her-
mes of the Heraion. Toto had not seen these
treasures before. His gorgeous eyes dilated, and
he was ardently appreciative. The Gloria of the
basilican altar ended at the moment when we
finished hearing our low mass, — say twenty-two
minutes. By waiting for the Ite of the high
mass, we should be detained till noon-day: so
we left the basilica before ten, considering our-
selves in luck for a change ; and in a few minutes
we were driving fast along the Appian Way.

I asked Toto whether he had anything to say
in honour of Sangiorgio.

" Oh, yes, sir; but many chapters! Why, my
beloved Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Ouires would
speak of nothing else, unless I made it necessary !
And he told his history to me so many times
that I can sing it to you in his proper words ;
only, he made me promise that, whenever I
should so sing, I should first say that I will not
swear that it is true. For one cannot say, for
certain, of Sangiorgio more than this, that he
was a brave young knight who slew a daemon-
dragon in the sea, and, afterward, was robbed
of the breath of his breast, by the sword of a
wicked king, who wished him to renye his Chris-
tian Faith.

" Also, the said Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-
Quires told me that people of antick times had
so much veneration for this megalomartyr, —

Protector of the Kingdom

that is to say, for the grandeur of this god,
Sangiorgio, — that they went further than Holy
Mother Church allows ; for they invented splen-
did histories about him, and added these to his
veritable Acts ; until, at last, no one knew how
much was really true, or how much false. Then
the Santo Padre feared lest the soul of Sangiorgio
should take a damage from insidious flattery;
and so He ordered him to think of nothing but
the eternal welfare of the illustrious English Race,
which is as powerful on the sea as was Sangiorgio
in those antick times. (Did you not let me see
the mighty ships of England at Civita Vccchia?
Have I not seen Sangiorgio's rose-red cross upon
them? Yes, sir. Therefore I am not ignorant
of those things.) Well then, and the Santo
Padre, called Gelasio, said, also, that every writing
about Sangiorgio must be burned ; and that no
more was to be known of him, for sure, except
what I have said; — brave — young — knight —
invincible on the sea — slayer of the dragon —
megalomartyr — protector of the English Race.
But yet, though you may burn books, you can-
not burn the memories and mouths of men ; and,
therefore, many histories of Sangiorgio remain ;
and perhaps they are true, perhaps false : but, as
to that, said Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires,
there is no knowing.

" Now that is clear to la sua eccellenza ; and
this is the history of Sangiorgio which Frat'
Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires sang to me : —

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

"4'Scuto Bonae Voluntatis Tuae : alleluia:
Coronasti eum Domine : alleluia :

" I cannot tell you to what race Ser Giorgio be-
longed ; but, if you journey southward to the
Three-Tongued Island, at length you shall attain
a maritime port upon the sea-shore, called Catania.
And, there, you take a ship; and, alway facing
the right side of the rising sun, you sail across
the sea, until you reach a foreign kingdom where
many islands are ; and, there, the Isle of the Sera-
phim, is where Ser Giorgio lived and died.

" No one knew whence he came ; for, when
he was a little tiny babe, a sailor of those islands
found him, with his girl-mother, in a drifting
boat, and brought him to the king as treasure
trove. And the king gave him to a priest who
served the chapel of Madonnina, called Sedes
Sapientise, that he might be well bred in holy
works and ways.

" His hair was like an orange in the light of
noon ; he had a skin of cream ; and eyes — but,
Eyes ! When you saw them first, they were
cool, and half-shut; but they looked you through
and through. When you saw them longer, you
found yourself to be as foolish as a jay. But,
when you knew them well, they opened, large,
and wide, and clear; and, in their shining depth
you saw the spark which no man dare to strike.
And their colour resembled a brown almond
bright with morning dew.

Protector of the Kingdom

"Ser Giorgio spent his boyhood by the sea,
where pure salt air gave grace, and hardihood,
and courage. Nor was the genius of his generous
soul untrained in the hidden wisdom which the
high gods have, and give to few. For, often at
night, Ser Giorgio would lie alone, upon the
summit of the giant headland riding on the sea,
and listen to great angels, whispering, each to
other in the winds, those mysteries which no
man can learn from written books. At day-dawn,
plunging from the height, he saw the waving
weeds, and shells of the sea-floor, and all the
marvel of the deep. Returning to the shore, he
wrang the salt sea from his hair, and went to
say his Ave Maria at Madonnina's shrine; which
same sweet Mother often left her Son, and
stepped down from her picture painted on the
chapel-wall, and called the Sedes Sapientias, who
deigned to teach the young Ser Giorgio holy
things.

"So the stripling lived, until he came to seven-
teen years of age : and, then, the king grew
jealous ; for, already, people looked upon Ser
Giorgio as a god, seeing his strength, his fear-
lessness, his youth, his goodness, and his ma-
jestick gait. And there was something more.
The king had cast his eye on that girl-mother,
whose white arms had borne the little tiny baby
in the drifting boat : but never had he dared to
harm her for he feared, as all men feared, the
blinding splendour of Ser Giorgio's eyes.

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

" Not many years before, a witch had sold her
soul to Sathanas for gold : also, she had bar-
gained with that arch-daemon that he should
arm her with the evil eye, so that all who looked
on her should turn to stone. Thus she was safe
from robbers who might try to steal her gold.
She was the eldest of five sisters, witches all.
Two lived in the desert. The other, two lived
with her, in a secret cave, far away across the
sea; from whence she cast spells, and sent hot
fevers floating through the world, blighted the
vines, blasted growing corn, and poisoned wells
and water-springs.

■ > • • a

" So the wicked king armed this hardy, valorous
youth, Ser Giorgio, with antient arms, — a bat-
tered helmet, a broken sword, a rusty shield,
and nothing more, — and sent him on a quest,
to find, and slay, the horrid witch ; for he thought
to rid himself, by this means, and without shame,
of the only champion who stood between the
mother of Scr Giorgio and his desire.

" But, before the young knight started on his
quest, he went and called on heaven to be his
aid, laying his antient arms before the altar, in
the chapel of the Madonnina by the sea. All
night he kept vigil, and prayed ; and, when day
dawned, the Madonnina, called Sedes Sapientiae,
stepped down from her picture painted on the
wall. Mighty angels and archangels came in her

Protector of the Kingdom

train ; and she said, ' O knight of mine, you go
to battle against Sathanas. Have you no fear? '

" Ser Giorgio answered, ' No, Madonnina ; sup-
posing that you wish me well.'

"The Madonnina said, most certainly she
wished him well; and, as a proof of her good-
will, she bade the archangel-prince, who stood at
her right hand, to doff his golden helmet. This,
she placed upon Ser Giorgio's head; and gave
him news that, all the time he lived unstained
by mortal sin, and wore the helm of San Michele
Arcangiolo, all mortal eyes and daemon's eyes
were blind to him. Then, at his queen's com-
mand, the archangel-prince standing at her left
hand, whose name was San Gabriele Arcangiolo,
stooped down, and bound upon the stripling's
eager feet gold shoes with wings, that, bird-like,
he might walk the high air over land and sea.
Then, her hand moved above the antient rusty
shield ; and, underneath her hand, there sprang
a rose-red cross, while the shield shone silver
white as crystal over snow, for joy because the
Madonnina blessed it. San Michele Arcangiolo
gave Ser Giorgio a sword, also a lance which had
a pennon white as the soul of a boy who wears
his chrismal robe; and, on the pennon, the rose-
red cross was signed, the same as on the shield.
And, last of all, the Madonnina took off her own
white mantle, broidered blue ; and, with her holy
hands, she clasped it on the breast of her young
knight.

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

" But Ser Giorgio cried, ' O Madonnina, will
not your favour grant me one thing more? It
is true, Maesta, and my lords these princes, that
you have given me a lance, a sword, a golden
helmet with curved crest, winged shoes, the rose-
red cross upon my shining shield, and your own
mantle, which, surely, angel-hands have woven
on the looms of heaven, in spring-time, from
petals of forget-me-nots and lilies; — all these,
O Madonnina, and my lords these princes, you
have given freely : yet I lack mail to shield my
breast, and I crave of you a knightly belt and
spurs of gold.' Ser Giorgio spoke so, boldly,
to the queen. He knew that he had but to
ask, — and have.

"The Madonnina answered, ' O knight of mine,
in all my armoury, there is no breast-plate better
than that which shields your brave heart now.'

" ' But, Madonnina, now, my breast is bare ! '
Ser Giorgio cried.

" The Madonnina answered him again. She
said, ' O knight of mine, Innocence is the breast-
plate that you wear; and, not the fieriest dart
forged by the arch-daemon, can pierce the fence
of youthful and inviolate innocence. Yet, —
mark me well, — it must be worn unceasingly ;
for, once put off, it cannot be put on again on
this side of the grave. And the belt and spurs
of gold will be the guerdon which I give to my
true knight — when he has won them.'

" With these words, the Madonnina blessed Ser

Protector of the Kingdom

Giorgio again, smiling upon him, and giving him
a white rose of paradise; and, at her smile, the
bordures of the silver-shining shield blossomed
with roses carved in gold.

"The vision faded; and the Madonnina, called
the Sedes Sapientiae, went back into her picture
painted on the wall : angels and archangels re-
turned to their own place, where San Michele
Arcangiolo set Santeligio, armourer and gold-
smith of the gods, to work on a helmet, lance,
and sword, in place of those lent to Ser Giorgio.
The chariot of the sun rode high above the pure
salt sea, upon whose shore Ser Giorgio stood,
with hair most beautiful to see, and shining with
the purple light of youth, equipped with arms,
and ready for his knightly quest.

. • » • »

" Angels clustered along the golden ramparts of
the Citta di Dio, to watch this stalwart champion
considering his plans. Ser Giorgio was wise, as
well as young and brave. He always marked
the seven, to cut off one. And presently, he
mounted up the giant headland riding on the sea;
and, striding to its summit, he raised his head, and
cried, ' Hola ! San Rafaele Arcangiolo ! Hola !
Hola!'

" The archangel-comrade heard Ser Giorgio's
voice, and spread his wings, and floated down,
as feathers flit upon the breeze. He said, ' You
do me honour, O Ser Giorgio ; for you have
gained the good will of my queen ; and, when

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

the favoured of the queen of angels needs my aid,
in all things I am bound to serve him, saving the
Will of Domeniddio.'

" The stripling answered, ' My knightly quest
lies on a dangerous road ; and my enemy is
hidden from me. Show me the horrid witch
whom I am sworn to slay. Be my companion
in my journey ; that, in peace, and health, and
joy, I may return again. Kurie eleeson. Christe
eleeson.'

" San Rafaele Arcangiolo said, ' O fearless
knight, I will go with you all the way along your
dangerous road, most willingly, and bring you
home at length, in peace, and health, and joy:
but I may not tell you where the witch lies hid-
den, for all the glory of the quest is yours.' And,
saying this, the huge archangel put off the radi-
ance of his princely state, and took the shape of
a slender squire, having rose-red hose and a tab-
ard, white as snow, whose blazon was a rose-red
cross, that he might serve Ser Giorgio, as, form-
erly, he served the young Tobia.

" A hundred miles away there stood a solitary
tree, seared and riven by thunderbolts, a hollow,
withered tree, upon a desert waste, all scorching
sand and flinty rock. Within this tree, there
lived a pair of sisters of the horrid witch, wrinkled,
and grey, and horrible. One of these hags had
a single eye, shrivelled and watery; the other
none. But this one had a tusk, a single tusk:

Protector of the Kingdom

the first was toothless. One hag depended on
the other ; for the first, with her one eye would
sight a prey, and make the second tear it with
her tusk. To these the noble knight Ser Giorgio
came, having no fear; and from one hag, he
snatched the horrid tusk ; and from the other hag,
he snatched the evil eye : and so he had them at
his mercy.

" Then, while they shrieked and champed their
gums with rage, he spoke, and offered restoration
of the eye and tusk ; but on condition that they
should first reveal to him the secret cave wherein
the hell-cat of a deathly witch, their sister, could
be found.

" Base curs will alway sell their friends, turning
traitor to avoid affliction. They wish to be on
the safe side, — the side which pays the best, and
gives no pain. Therefore these hags hastened to
betray their sister's hiding-place, saying that
Sathanas, the arch-daemon, kept her far away, in
Africa, where he had given her a secret cave,
with many black daemons and hobgoblins for her
servitors, who burrowed long tunnels in the
ground, and, by those roads, conveyed her
poisons through the world.

" When he heard this, Ser Giorgio stooped
down, giving back the eye and the tusk ; then he
mounted in the air, borne upward on the wings
of gold which San Gabriele Arcangiolo had
bound upon his eager feet ; and, ere the hags
had time to see him with the eye, or grip or tear

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

him with the venomous tusk, the knight was
speeding swiftly over land and sea, upon his
quest. San Rafaele Arcangiolo, shaped like a
slender squire, went with him for a guard, leading
him on. He wore the mantle which the Madon-
nina gave, — the Madonnina whom he used to
worship in her picture painted on the chapel wall,
and called the Sedes Sapientiae, — and so he
sped his swift unerring way through the high air,
all that long journey into Africa. There, he
found the dark and slimy cave wherein the
horrid witch who sold her soul to Sathanas was
hiding with her other sister-witches.

. , • • •

" Ser Giorgio raised his silver-shining shield ;
the Madonnina's smile had made it shine for joy
because she blessed it. The outside bore the
rose-red cross ; the inside showed a picture,
mirrored bright and clear as in a glass. And,
upward — ahvay upward, to the inside of his
lifted shield Ser Giorgio looked, that, so, the evil
eye of that dread witch should cast no spell on
him.

*' He saw the sisters sleeping on a couch made
of the multitudinous bodies of fat toads. Black
cacoda^mons and hobgoblins fanned hot fevers in
the air, with weary beatings of blistered wings of
bats. Each witch was clothed with scaly skin ;
and at their finger-ends were claws of brass.
He watched them in the brilliance of his
shield.

Protector of the Kingdom

" The horrid witch, the slave of Sathanas, slept
with a sister on this side, and on that; and, in
the mirror of his silver-shining shield, Ser Gior-
gio saw the image of that awful face which turns
all men to stone. It had no skin.

" The festered flesh was bleeding raw, and green.
The shapeless features twitched unceasingly.
Grey vipers writhed and tangled in the hair.
A huge white toad sat dribbling on the brow.
And, fearful, wide, wild, horror lay behind
The stony glaring of those lidless eyes.

" Then, like a falling star, the young knight's
sword — the sword of San Michele Arcangiolo
— struck off the head of the bloated witch ; while
in the act, Ser Giorgio seized it as it fell, and
gave it to his slender squire, mounting in air,
borne upward on the wings of gold which San
Gabriele Arcangiolo had bound upon his eager
feet. Neither the cacodaemons, nor hobgoblins,
nor the sisters of the horrid witch could see him,
for he wore the curving-crested helmet of San
Michele Arcangiolo; and he flew so mightily
upon the wings of gold, that he escaped their
rage, and rending of the air with brazen
claws.

" So he left the dark and slimy cave ; and, ris-
ing to the clouds, he flew — he flew — he flew —
and scoured away across the sea.

• « • • «

** Sathanas, thwarted here, breaks out there.

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

So it will be till the consummation of the world,
when San Michele Arcangiolo will chain him fast
for ever in the lowest pit of hell. And, while Ser
Giorgio was gone to slay the horrid witch and
take her head, Sathanas made an onslaught on
that isle where the Madonnina's shrine stood by
the shore, sending there the daemon called Apol-
lyon, to make the people sin.

" Out of the sea, he rose, all fierce and grim;
a monstrous lizard, having iron jaws,
and snorting fearful gusts of smoke and flame;
whose snaky length was armed with iron scales,
and writhed along the waves for full a mile.
And he demanded of the king that worship and

that service which is paid to the Signor Iddio

on His Throne.

" The king refused ; for, though a proud and
wicked man, also full of lust, he called himself a
Christian.

" At this, the dragon breathed a pestilence
across the land ; and all the horses perished where
they stood ; then he sank the slow length of
his iron coils beneath the boiling waters of the
sea.

"Next day, the hideous lizard climbed the giant
headland riding on the sea; and once more he
called upon the people to save themselves by
means of mortal sin. Met by refusal, the mon-
ster roared with rage, and blew a pestilence

Protector of the Kingdom

across the land which slew half all the cattle ;
then he sank beneath the boiling waters of the
angry sea.

"The third day, Apollyon came again, and
crouched before the king. Crowds stood near,
all pale and sick, because the dragon said no
word, but sighed continually; and, at each sigh,
the earth shook, and a gust of hot wind with a
noisome stench blasted them, striking fear of
death into their hearts. And they said to the
king, ' Surely the gods amuse themselves in
paradise, forgetting us, their clients, leaving us a
prey to Sathanas. If we resist this daemon, we
and our cattle die, and our land is desolated.
Therefore, O king, speak courteously to him.
Ask him to take a gift, and go away, leaving us
in peace. To-day, we are in his power. To-
morrow, the gods may remember us, and look
upon us, and help us ; but, to-day, we must help
ourselves.'

" The king spoke courteously to the dragon,
asking what gift must be given to buy his favour.

" The loathsome monster claimed a gift of all
the little girls of fourteen years, that he might
suck their hearts to quench his thirst.

" But the people wept, crying for mercy, offer-
ing any gift but that; and, the more they wept
and cried, the more the dragon raged, sickening
them with the hot stench of his breath, making
them mad with fear, till they consented to this

frightful sacrifice in order to appease his anger.
4 49

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

"Their eyes went blind with tears they could not

shed ;
their bursting throats ached with a powerless

rage :
and there they stripped their children by the

shore,
all tender little maids of fourteen years,
and bound them, helpless, on the rocks, around
the giant headland riding on the sea.

" The dragon spumed along the heaving foam,
to drink their blood.

" Despairing fathers saw those gentle bodies
tremble, turn by turn, crushed in the hot clutch
of Apollyon, whose burning lips sank, sucking
out the heart, between the dainty upward-point-
ing breasts. They saw the struggle, and writh-
ing quiver of soft white limbs, of little rounded
arms, which, yesterday, were nestling in some
loved embrace. And, now, they saw their dar-
lings still, and cold, and pale, as winter's snow.

" From rock to rock, from maid to maid, the
dragon darted all that day; till nightfall showed
a fringe of pallid broken flowers along the shore ;
and then he sank the slow length of his iron
coils beneath the boiling waters of the outraged
sea.

*' Mothers went wild that night; and lovers raved
against the Signor Iddio on His Throne,
against the Madonnina and her Son,
against th' unhearing gods in paradise,

Protector of the Kingdom

against th' angelick hierarchy of heaven,
because these things were done. Oh ! they

forgot
that christian men need never fear the fiend ;
for Sathanas, when boldly faced, will fly :
therefore he must be spat upon, defied
if need be, even unto death, and worse ;
for th' amaranthine crown, which heroes wear
in paradise, outweighs the bitter pain
that wins it, here. And, further, they forgot

that, yielding to the menaces of Sathanas,

to-day, makes him free to come again with

fresh demands, to-morrow.

" So, when the sun rose, all the sky blushed red
to see the spoils which the dragon had won from
christian men; and Apollyon came once more,
rearing grinning jaws above the sea.

" Now that king had a daughter, a lovely little
maid of fourteen years ; and when his people gave
their children to appease the dragon, he kept her
hidden in the palace, thinking that Apollyon,
who may be quailed and quelled, but not
cheated — as Sathanas, his lord, may be defeated,
but not deceived, being himself the master of
deceit — would have slaked his thirst upon the
hecatomb of yesterday.

" But the dragon came, demanding that the
king's young daughter should be brought and
bound, that he might suck her heart as he had
sucked the hearts of all the other maids, or, in

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

default, he said, the island should be over-
whelmed, engulphed, washed out by the sea.

"And, even with these words, he heaved his
horrid length above the water, high into the air,
and, falling forward with a thunderous crash,
striking the surface with a belly scaled with iron,
he made huge waves rush up the beach right to
the terror-bound feet of those who stood, trans-
fixed with fear and shame, to parley with him.

" San Rafaele Arcangiolo urged Ser Giorgio on,
and gave him swifter speed across the sea. He
flew — he flew — he flew on the wings of gold
which San Gabriele Arcangiolo had bound upon
his eager feet.

« • > • ■

" Then that king brought his daughter to the
shore, and stretched her on a rock. She flushed
as rosy-white as any pearl. He strained her arms
to right and left, and bound them in the shadows
of her hair. He laid her little feet among loose
strands of weed above the surface of the sea.
The slim young maid lay still. Her jacinth eyes
were wet with tears, and the sweet upward-point-
ing breasts quivered with little sighs.

"Apollyon grinned to see this delicate morsel;
and, to inflame his lust of blood, he coiled his mon-
strous lizard body, with iron jaws, and armed along
its length with giant fish-scales all of iron, around
the rock on which his victim lay ; feasted and fed
his burning eyes and brain, gloating over this deli-

Protector of the Kingdom

cious maid, till he flashed into flame and lashed the
boiling sea, eyeing her from a distance, that he
might rush in, at last, to clutch her, cleaving the
waters with sinuous tail ; and, plunging lips deep
in her soft flesh, suck out her heart's blood.

• • • • ■

" But, behold ! behold ! Between the infernal
dragon and the wild-rose maid, the great Ser
Giorgio came !

" He flew on the wings of gold which San
Gabriele Arcangiolo had bound upon his eager
feet. The mantle of Madonnina streamed in the
wind, kissing the rose-red cross of the pennon
of the lance that swung from the socket at the
heel. He wore the golden curving-crested helmet
of San Michele Arcangiolo. On his left arm, he
bore the silver shining shield, whose bordures
bloomed with golden roses, and which shone for
joy when the Madonnina smiled and blessed it
with the rose-red cross. And in his strong right
hand he brandished his resistless golden-hilted
sword. He came between the infernal dragon
and the maid.

'•And as Apollyon foamed along the surface of
the sea, his eyes fell on the rose-red cross Ser
Giorgio bore, signed on the silver of his shining
shield.

" And terror took the daemon.

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

" Ser Giorgio swung his sword, — the sword of
San Michele Arcangiolo, — raining slashing
blows upon that iron-scaled neck, and slew the
infernal dragon of the sea,

• • * • •

*' Then he unbound the gentle maid, the daugh-
ter of the king, yet, in his reverence for woman-
hood, he gave her not the pain of seeing him, but
flew with her to her father on the shore, — father
dazed with shame, and fear, and utter joy. And
while the maiden swooned, Ser Giorgio revealed
himself, raising the golden curving-crested hel-
met of San Michele Arcangiolio for an instant,
while the thankful people found a voice, and
gave a loud ovation shouting, * lo ! lo ! ' to the
victor.

" But Ser Giorgio, again invisible, passed swiftly
through the throng, and went to bend low his
high knee before the altar of Madonnina, called
the Sedes Sapiential, in her chapel by the sea.

" First, to San Rafaele Arcangiolo, who served
him as a slender squire, he offered thanks for com-
panionship and service on a dangerous quest;
and for bringing him home in peace and health
and joy.

" Next to San Gabriele Arcangiolo and San
Michele Arcangiolo, he gave the helmet and
the lance, the sword and the shoes with wings
of gold, which those fair princes lent; and
he offered thanks to them for their strong
aid.

Protector of the Kingdom

" Then, last, but best of all, he rendered grateful
praise to her who gave him wisdom and a valiant
heart, — the Madonnina in her picture painted on
the wall, and called the Sedes Sapientiae : also,
he returned that admirable mantle, which hands
of angels wove on looms of heaven in spring from
petals of forget-me-nots and lilies. And he said
* Madonnina Mary, tell me ; have I won that belt
and spurs of gold ? ' She answered, ' O strenuous
youth, O vehement knight of mine, have patience.
Once more, I claim your service. Once more
you must bear arms for me against Sathanas.
And, when you see me sitting on my throne, in
the kingdom of my Son, then you may ask me
for the belt and spurs of gold ; for, then, you will
have won them.'

" So, having paid his duteous respects to her
whom II Santissimo, dying on His Cross, gave
to Man for Mother, next, Ser Giorgio embraced
his earthly mother, smiling at him through the
tears which loving women shed for joy, and held
his strong arms round her, while she babbled
of her pride in her boy's bravery, murmuring
praises to the gods who guarded him in his
dangerous quest, and brought him back to her
in peace and health and joy.

" Next day, the king would have Ser Giorgio
show himself, and say what honour, or what
reward would pay him for his arduous toil. And,
by the throne, there stood the king's fair daughter,

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

radiant in silver sown with pearls, and sweet and
fresh and pure as a wild-rose.

•' Ser Giorgio looked upon her loveliness; and
he offered her the white rose of paradise, which
the Madonnina gave him when she smiled and
blessed his silver-shining shield in her chapel by
the sea.

" The princess took the rose of paradise, wor-
shipping it with her lips; and, then, Ser Giorgio
asked the king to give him, as his meed, that
gracious maid, his daughter, for a bride.

"And the king agreed; but, being a wicked
man whose plans the youth had spoiled, he
cursed Ser Giorgio, deep down in his heart.

o • • "

" That night the king could not sleep ; and, to
him, raging with disappointment, came Sathanas,
who said, 'O king, have you resolved to leave
your pleasures, and to serve the silly gods who
never let you follow your own will, but keep you
strictly lest you should enjoy the good things
of my store? This knight of yours, this Giorgio,
has slain my witch whom I had bought with
gold; also, my slave Apollyon : and you will
reward him with that delicious maid, your
daughter, who was meat of mine. What do you
gain by this? Nothing! Your bed is bare!
The woman for whom your heart is sick, is safe,
and rests secure, protected by her son, this
Giorgio. There is no warm embrace to clasp
you; and, yet, you give your daughter to this

Protector of the Kingdom

boy, who keeps you from your heart's desire.
And all because he slew my slaves, forsooth !
Know, silly king, that I have many millions
more, each more powerful than Apollyon, or
than that witch. These, I will send, to blight
your vines, to blast your growing corn, poison
your wells and water-springs, kill all your cattle,
rob you of your crown, and make you gnaw your
wasted flesh for food, and beg for any death
to free you from your pain : unless you swear
allegiance to my will, and serve me as your
god. '

" Before the threats of Sathanas, the wicked
king cowered down upon his bed. He forgot
that the sign of our salvation, waved in the air,
will drive the arch-daemon down to endless fire;
for he was drunk with lust, and the sin of jealousy
was like a chain about his mind. He whimpered,
that he knew not what to do ! — He lusted after
the mother, and he loathed her son ! — Also —
he was a miserable man. — But, what could he
do? —

" Sathanas answered him, ' Adore me, and obey
my will.' And, sinking low his voice, — so low,
indeed, that it was not a voice, nor a whisper,
nor even a thought suggested, but a picture, and
a scroll, which only the eye of one man's mind,
and that the king's, could read or see, — Sathanas
and his royal slave pondered over many cunning
stratagems, till the day dawned ; and they con-
spired,

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

" against the Signer Iddio on His Throne,
to rob the Madonnina of her knight,
to slay Ser Giorgio by a shameful death,
to get his mother for the lustful king,
his bride to go, a maid, to Sathanas.

• • • • •

" That day was chaunted the epithalamium of
the very noble knight, Ser Giorgio, and the wild-
rose daughter of the king. All day long, the
populace rejoiced and feasted ; and they crowned
the intrepid youth and his young bride with
roses, till the sun went down.

" Ser Giorgio sat by the seashore, between his
mother and his maid. He spoke of the Madon-
nina's promise of a belt and spurs of gold. The
stars grew bright in a violet sky. In silence,
revel died.

" Then, Sathanas appeared before the wicked
lustful king, and said, ' The hour is near. Arise:
fulfil your oath to me ! '

• • • • •

" The youthful knight was mounting on his
bridal-bed, to taste the loveliness of that white
wild-rose maid which the might of his strong
arm had won. But, even as he felt her heart
quiver with love so near his own, and kissed the
freshness of her nestling in his ardent breast, San
Rafaele Arcangiolo came flying down the moon-
beams' silver shining in the room, who said,

Protector of the Kingdom

' Arise, Ser Giorgio, and go to win your belt
and spurs of gold. I take your mother and your
bride to be my care ; and, you may know that,
under my protection, they are safe from every
evil thing. Therefore, go in peace, knight of
my queen, and have no fear.'

" Ser Giorgio veiled the ivory of his skin be-
neath the tunic which he wore in peaceful days.
It was as white as snow ; and, on the breast, his
mother's hands had sewn his badge, the rose-
red cross. He buckled the white straps of the
sandals on his insteps, and half-way between his
ankles and his high uncringing knees. Striding
to the threshold, he encountered sudden-sent
messengers, who said, ' The king commands
your illustrious presence at his council hall ; for
news has reached him that an antient foe, hav-
ing heard of the damage done by the infernal
dragon, has deemed the time a fitting one for
invasion of the kingdom.'

" Ser Giorgio followed the heralds. At the
court, the wicked king was waiting on his throne,
surrounded by his councillors, all wise old men,
the wisest in the realm ; though none had wisdom,
or valour, or insight, deep as that which tingled
in the young Ser Giorgio from heel to crown.
This, they knew well : and, in their stress, they
asked advice of him, as of a god.

• • • • •

" San Rafaele Arcangiolo brought to the shore
a little swift-sailed boat. In it, he placed the

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

mother and the bride beloved of Ser Giorgio.
He set the sail. He took the rudder ; and a
legion of gentle sweet-eyed angels softly fanned
with large white rustling wings, driving the boat,
with a heron's speed, across the sea.

. • • • •

" The council, summoned on pretence, sat many
hours ; and when the wise old men had freed
their minds of many words, Ser Giorgio spoke
two, showing how any enemy might be met, and
crushed.

" Suddenly, the king started, and he cried,
' Behold, the angel-guardian of the kingdom,
who deigns to cheer us by a vision of his glory,
that he may help us in distress ! Oh, come,
let us adore and worship, giving thanks ! ' And
he pointed to a form resembling a mighty
angel, which stood before them in the council-
chamber.

" The king and his ignorant wise old councillors
kneeled down ; but Ser Giorgio vehemently
cried, 'Here is no angel, but a fiend, O king!
For I have often heard that Sathanas has cun-
ning by which he can transform his horrid
shape into the resemblance of an angel, deceiv-
ing many ! Therefore, arise, O king, and you
wise councillors, and spit upon this cacodccmon ! "

" But the wicked king and his deceived coun-
cillors bade the bold knight to favour his tongue,
and let his elders know their duty, seeing that
he was but a boy of seventeen years. Also,

Protector of the Kingdom

they asked, by what signs such a youth as he
could surely tell whether this vision were an
angel or a cacodaemon?

" Ser Giorgio answered, ' That I am but a lad,
is true ; yet, there have been old men glad when
some little child would lead them home; and to
mere babes wisdom is revealed, but hidden from
the wise and prudent. And, for the signs by
which I know this fiend — my heart is pure,
my eyes are keen, and clear, and innocent of
sin; therefore, humbly, I would dare to look,
boldly, upon the Vision of the Face of God in
all the Immortal Splendour of His Majesty,
Whose high archangels are my friends, and my
companions, every day ; but, when I pierce into
the eyes of this infernal daemon, he winces at
my glance, and shifts his own. Can a lad, as I
am, cause the eyes of angels to flicker with
fear? Also, he stinks of sin. If you would
see a proof — '

" The candid boy lifted his hand, and waved the
mystic sign of our salvation right in the daemon's
face.

" There was a flash of fire, a roar as of thunder,
and darkness for a moment. When the self-
shut and blind eyes of the king and of his
grave courtiers looked again, Sathanas was
gone ; bare was the porphyry pavement where
he lately stood.

" Yet Sathanas is a foe who comes continually ;
and continually the christian warrior fights to

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

drive him back. And to those eyes which gazed
on emptiness, Sathanas, by magick art, appeared
in angel form once more.

■ " For guards, the king cried ; and, at his signal,
a band of armed soldiers occupied the council-
chamber, menacing Ser Giorgio, who, unmoved
by any fear, unflinchingly defied the daemon,
and his tool and slave, the king.

" But that king, mindful of his oath to Sathanas,
said, ' O Ser Giorgio, you speak blasphemy
against the angel-guardian of our kingdom, merit-
ing death. Yet, seeing that you are a youth,
and rash, also the slayer of the dragon, you shall
not die, if you consent to kneel, now, and worship
this angel.'

" Ser Giorgio looked upon the armed guards
with scorn. To the king, he said no word in
his disdain. He raised his brave hand high, and
waved the mystick sign of our salvation in the
daemon's face.

*' Once more flashed fire : darkness followed an
angry war of thunder : and Sathanas was gone.
But, in a moment, he showed himself again on
that same porphyry pavement where he stood
before.

" Then the king cried against Ser Giorgio, in
his wrath, ' It may be that you have no fear of
death, O youth; but think of your beloved
mother — of your beloved bride. And hear me
swear that unless you will obey, and on your
knees adore this angel, I will have your blood,

Protector of the Kingdom

first; and, then, the blood of those whom your
dead arms cannot protect. More; for, before
they die, outrage the foulest shall defile them —
your mother shall be mine ; and your young
bride — • this night, I '11 fling her as a plaything
to my slaves ! '

" Ser Giorgio neither blenched, nor faltered.
The brave true-hearted boy shot arrows of scath-
ing scorn out from the blinding splendour of his
eyes. He said, ' O wretched king, vain is your
rage. My mother and my bride are in the
hands of God, where torment cannot touch them :
and this I know ; for San Rafaele Arcangiolo
holds them safe, who, with his angel legion, is
their sure defence against all evils with which
Sathanas, your master, makes you menace them.
To me, your threats will bring eternal glory:
my sons and my sons' sons will bear my blazon
through the ages when your very name 's forgot-
ten. And, therefore, I undauntedly rejoice to
die for my Lord and Leader, Jhesus Christ, and
for His rose-red cross.'

" Here was a white-robed hero, always vigilant,
faithful unto death, dauntless, superb, indomit-
able, victorious. He lifted stainless hands and
fearless eyes to heaven, and he whispered, * Ma-
donnina Mary, pray for me, that I may win my
belt and spurs of gold.'

" Stung to fury by defeat so dire, the wicked
king commanded, and the sword of the carnefex
struck off the head of the very noble knight,

Being an Epick of Sangiorgio

Sangiorgio, that mighty champion invincible by
land or sea, who slew the daemon-dragon with
his strong right arm, who bears his blazon of the
rose-red cross for evermore signed on the silver
of his shining shield, beside the sea of crystal
near God's throne, where Madonnina gave her
paladin, the mantle woven on the looms of heaven
by angel-hands in spring from petals of forget-
me-nots and lilies, the martyr's sceptre all of
golden palm, the hero's crown of amaranthine
laurel, and the belt and spurs of gold.

• • • ' • ■

" The wicked king became a prey for daemons.
Worms fed on his living flesh, while Sathanas
ruled his kingdom.

• • • • *

" The Madonnina, painted on the chapel wall,
and called the Sedes Sapientiae, would stay no
longer in that dsemon-dominated land. She
flew on angels' wings across the sea ; and, beyond
those hills at Genazzano, is her shrine, where
angels hold her picture till this day, safe, and
inviolate, in middle air.

• • • • •

" Safely, with a heron's speed, across the sea, to
this same shore, San Rafaele Arcangiolo and his
gentle sweet-eyed angel -legion brought the little
swift-sailed boat. And, where the antient city
of Ardca stands to-day, — city which gave San-
giorgio's blazon and his illustrious progeny to
Rome, — the mother and the bride of the very

Protector of the Kingdom

noble knight, Sangiorgio, lived not many years,
in exile, by the sea; and then they both went
home unto our Lord.

"ijl Scuto Bonae Vohintatis Tuae : alleluia:
Coronasti eum, Domine : alleluia : "

" That, o chare puer," I exclaimed, " is an
Epic which deserved declamation to stringed
instruments."

• • • • •

As I descended from the cart, I asked, " By
the bye, Toto, what became of the witch's
head?"

"Well, sir; briefly, this. San Rafaele Arcan-
giolo cut it up into little bits like dice, covered
them with fig-leaves, and gave them to Sant-
ignazio of Loyola in a fig-basket. But I will tell
you that history some other time."

Why the Rose is Red

VIJ
Why the Rose is Red

BREAKFAST was ready, under the ma-
gnolia-tree. I like these late-spring
breakfasts in the sun.

Guido and Ercole had executed a masterpiece
in their simplicity, with three great bowls of
beaten brass, one in the middle to support my
book, one each at the opposite corners of the
table, all filled with damask roses of the darkest
purple, fresh, and breathing liquid odours as of
cloves celestial ! I gave the creatures compli-
ments, and sat down to breakfast. Cocomeri
ripieni, Port Salut, olives, perfumed oranges,
pitch-flavoured wine, — delicious !

At the end, Guido and Ercole went away to
fetch coffee. Toto, who had been shedding his
city clothes, and getting his breakfast, came and
stood by the left side of my table. I happened
to reach for another mandarin, and I saw him
with the corner of my eye.

Good gracious ! The boy was livid, stiff and
stark, convulsed with silent rage. I never saw
such a fury. But, of course, I took no notice. I
was going to have an emotion by and bye ; and I

Why the Rose is Red

became as demurely watchful as my yellow
cat Annia.

When Guido and Ercole returned, I saw Toto's
right fist clench till the knuckles grew quite pale,
and Guido let the coffee-pot fall onto the grass.
Toto snarled, "A — po — plex — y," in a turgid
undertone.

I dislike imprecations, and I said, " Sh ; " while
Guido ran to the house for another pot of coffee.

While I was sipping it, and using a cigarette,
I made the following secret observations : —

(a) Guido, who is Toto's very delicately slim
and agile little brother of thirteen years, with
the most beautiful white to his eyes like chruso-
berul, stood on the right side of my table,
turned to alabaster, looking wildly on the face of
Toto, and with tears streaming down his cheeks ;

(/S) Ercole — a lusty bronze Roman with the
visage of luvenis Octavianus — stood, a little be-
hind and to the right of Guido, presenting an
image of horror of the unknown ;

(7) and, across the table, Toto glared like —
the witch's head.

. . • • *

I went to take a look round my studio.

Toto followed, " Permission to forsake la sua
eccellenza during ten minutes," he asked. I
nodded forward. He tore away like one frantick.
From the terrace, I watched his tremendous legs
stride headlong down the Via Livia to the city.

I played about for a little by myself, and re-

Why the Rose is Red

solved to have a lazy hour doing nothing at
all.

But here came a most shocking thing.

In the studio there is a large glass door which
opens upon a little terrace, giving a lovely wide
vista of the city below, then the Campagna, and
beyond that the sea, fourteen miles away. At
the side of the terrace a stair leads down into the
garden.

Darkening this doorway, Toto towered on high,
with the hair of Guido in his right hand, and the
hair of Ercole in his left. He forced them down
upon their knees, and they wept piteously, and,
antiphonally, they cried to me : —

" :V^. Oh, pardon ! "

"1^. Pardon!"

" V^. Ah, we did not know ! "

" K^-. We did not know ! "

"Y^. To la sua eccellenza, we wished to give
pleasure ! "

"-Rr. To la sua eccellenza, we tried to give
pleasure ! "

" V'. But it was our evil day ! "

"^. If la sua eccellenza would only believe ! "

" V^. Oh, pardon ! "

"IT. Pardon! "

I became very angry. I am very cutting, in
my rages. I said, " Go away, little sillies ! "

They expected to be killed, I know. They
were quite heart-broken, plainly. They got up
and went away. Toto was for following, but I

why the Rose is Red

recalled him. There was a hideous bulge on his

stomach. He had got some lump stowed away

beneath his shirt at his waist.

" Beast," I said, " what is the meaning of this?

What have those rudikopaide done that you

should make me such a scene?"

" Sir, they repent; and they ask for pardon."
" Oh, yes ! — pardon ! — But for what crime?

— They 've broken something. — I know it ! — "
" No, sir. But for the insult."

" Heaven be my aid and grant me final per-
severance ! " I cried, " what are you driving at? "

"The insult, sir; and they shall take their
penance now," he turned away, looking posi-
tively rhadamanthine.

" Toto ! — Come back ! — Don't dare to move !

— Here, go to the throne, and pose — like this ! "
I seized a little cast of the Hebe from Virinum
in Carinthia and shoved it forward, musing over
the inscription incised on the front of the right
thigh, A. POPLICIVS. D. LANTIOC. TI. BARBIVS. Q.
PL. TIBER.

Then I shut the doors and attended to the
lighting of the model. He threw his vesture
behind a screen, emerged, mounted the throne,
considered the Hebe for a minute, undulated
deliciously, and stiffened into the pose, — a horrid
one, but one that served my purpose. I had my
lion in a leash, and I began to fiddle with a char-
coal stick on a bit of brown paper.

After ten minutes, I said, "Are you cold?"

why the Rose is Red

Toto stirred not from his stony stillness ; but
his answering voice proceeded from a whisper to
a roar, like this —

crescen .._.-_.. do

pp "No, sir : " —p " Hot : " —/"Awful : " — ^" Burning."

"You have taken a fever, my lad," I said;
" driving over the Campagna last night, I sup-
pose." I went and felt his flesh. That was
normal: also, his pulse.

"No, sir; but the insult!"

" Look here, Toto," I said ; " if you will drop
your beastly elliptical Latin manner of leaving
every important thing to my imagination, and
will try to express yourself like an Englishman
for once, you will improve my temper. Dash it
all, boy, what do you mean? "

"Sir, the insult! "

" Per Cristo ! What insult? Two words now !"

" Sir, in the pip of an apple — the Roses ! "

"Well! And the Roses?"

" They were Red, sir ! Oh ! " (with another
roar) " they shall bleed, — those boar-pigs, —
they shall bleed ! "

" Silence ! " I cried. " Come here ! "

He descended the throne, and came to me.
Fauno Furibondo — that's what he was ! There
was something of terrible in this boy. You
could see his heart-beats. I looked upon him
with disgust.

Why the Rose is Red

" Dress," I said.

He retired behind the screen. I must chain
this lion more securely.

I made him kneel at my feet; and I took his
throat in my two hands.

" Now lend me both your ears," I said. I
saw attention concentrated in his eyes. " I think
the Roses on my table to have been entirely ex-
quisite. Simpaticissime ! I am pleased with
those Roses. Understand?"

He looked at me with unfeigned amazement;
and, oh, how earnestly I watched the changes in
his expression !

" I think Guido and Ercole to have very beau-
tiful souls, or they could not have invented so
beautiful a decoration for my table."

He thought me guilty of mockery. I saw
anger in his glance; and I throttled him a little.

" Pax ! " I said. " I mean what I say. I am
delighted with those Roses."

Two emotions coursed processionally through
his eyes. First, penitent appeal. Second, ven-
eration.

" Tell me, Toto ; what is that under your
shirt?"

He put his hand into his bosom, and drew out
a very nasty, coiled-up thing.

"What is it?"

" Sir, the sinew of a bullock."

"Where did you get it?"

" Sir, I ran down to the butcher for it."

Why the Rose is Red

** What do you intend to do with it? "

*' Sir, I intend to flay the hides off Guido, my
brother, and off Ercole of Rome, in order to
appease la sua eccellenza who is so deeply
wounded by vinegar-sons-of-wine that he has
no words left wherewith to curse them."

I throttled him again. " For putting Red
Roses on my table?"

" Yes, sir."

Without speaking, I looked long through the
eyes into the soul of this amazing creature.

Then, I said, " Toto, I am a child; a baby;
knowing nothing. I must have a teacher to
make me understand. — What is the sin of Red
Roses? Tell me?"

" Sir, it is the supreme insult, to offer Red
Roses to an Englishman."

"Why?"

" Sir, the Red Rose is stained with blood —
the blood of Holy Innocents. Therefore, it is
a badge of infamy."

" Oh," I said. " Very well. And you are
going to flay Guido and Ercole?"

" I am going to flay Guido and Ercole."

I released his throat.

"Toto mio," I said; "what good will those
kids be to me without their skins? I prefer to
give them their penance myself"

" Sir, if you will take that trouble, it will be
better so. But, very humbly, I ask you to

forgive them also."

why the Rose is Red

" Yes, I forgive them freely." He bent down
and kissed my ring. " Bring them to the anti-
camera, now ; and treat them very, very kindly.
If you make them unhappy any more, I will
kill you. Remember!"

• • • • •

Oh, such pathetick little abjects came in !
Distressed ones, who, having innocently insulted
the lord whom they adored, only wished to die;
for they had forfeited his favour for ever ; and
their hearts were broken ! What an emotion !

I made the three boys sit down on stools. I
was going to be impressive, and so I sat on the
high chair. I said, " Guido and Ercole, you
have offered me an insult: but you did it in
innocence ; and you are truly contrite. Is that
so?" •

" Oh, sir, yes ! "

" Then, for your penance, you must promise
to believe what I am going to tell you. Do you
promise? "

" Oh, sir, yes ! "

"Then listen. All through my life I have
loved Red Roses. Therefore, you did not offend
me by putting Red Roses on my table. But
now I have learned that an Englishman ought
to hate Red Roses, and not to love them. So I
am converted, and you must never offer me any
more red roses."

" No, sir, never, sir ! "

" Well then, you are forgiven. And because

Why the Rose is Red

I like you to be happy, we will all make an ex-
pedition to Velletri, to-morrow."

''Oh, sir!"

" And, for his penance, Toto, who committed
the sin of anger because he wishes me well, must
tell us why the Red Rose is a badge of infamy."

As though a tap had been turned on, Toto be-
gan to intone rhythmick cadences.

" When the Padre Eterno made the world. He
resolved to plant a garden ; and He sent one of
the seven angels with a mete-yard of gold, to
mark out a fine situation by the river-side, where
were gentle hills and dales.

" He marked out this garden in the shape of a
square, one thousand and five hundred miles
each way, enclosed by an impenetrable hawthorn
bush, white and pink, with flowers and fragrance
on the inside, and piercing thorns without. Round
the four sides of the garden went this hawthorn
bush, one hundred and seventy-three cubits high,
and one hundred and seventy-three cubits deep.

" The Padre Eterno planted groves of trees, all
in beautiful order : orange-trees, and almond-trees,
and apple-trees, and lemon-trees, and cherry-
trees, with the blossoms always on the one side,
for pleasure to sight and smell; and ripe fruit
always on the other side for pleasure to the taste.

" The hills He crowned with pine-forests ; and
He decked their slopes with little olive-groves.
Here were vineyards of white and purple grapes.
There were palms and poplars by the brooks.

Why the Rose is Red

Along the pools, He placed osiers and willow-
trees and bulrushes for bordures : and He made
great lawns of fine green grass as soft as the fur
of cats, where the young Lord Adamo might rest
under shady trees. Each lawn was surrounded
by bushes of a different kind; and on each lawn
were different kinds of trees and different kinds
of flowers. One lawn was bordured by syringa-
bushes and adorned with wall-flowers, and
heliotrope, and golden-rod. Another lawn was
bordured by blue hydrangea bushes, and studded
with poppies and meadow-sweet, A third lawn
was bordured by bushes of rosemary, and orna-
mented with southernwood and lilies ; and there
were white peacocks, and peacocks purple in
their pride. Under the walnut-trees were hya-
cinths, under the sycamore-trees were primroses,
under the mulberry-trees were asphodels, under
the cedar-trees were forget-me-nots, under the
chestnut-trees were daisies, under the oak-trees
were violets. On the pools, great white lilies
floated ; and, at their marges, were iris and mari-
gold, and moss.

" Oh, a beautiful garden !

" Yet the Padre Eterno was not content. What
He had done was very good, according to the
Scripture ; but it was not His best. He had not
done His all : and He wished for one more
flower to be the queen of the garden. So, under
the oak-trees. He planted a thorn ; and He
starred the thorn with a bloom having five petals,

why the Rose is Red

tender as wings of butterflies, white as the soul
of a little child, and having a heart of purest
gold.

" Then the Nine Quires of angels came singing
through the garden ; and, in a blossom of ma-
gnolia, they collected odours from the lily, and the
violet, and the hyacinth, and thyme and wall-
flower and orange-blossom and meadow-sweet
and southernwood and rosemary. And the Padre
Eterno poured the perfume from the magnolia-
chalice over the new white flower, and called
it Rosa Mystica. He appointed the Sixth Quire
of angels, that is to say, the Dominations, to
guard and tend it night and day.

" These things having been done, the Padre
Eterno put the young Lord Adamo into His gar-
den. And, in order that he might not be alone.
He made him sleep : and while he slept. He gently
divided him in two pieces, a large one, and a
small, but each piece alive by itself though be-
longing to the other. The large piece of the
Lord Adamo was called Man ; and the small
piece was our Mother Eva, who is Woman. But
Sathanas, who always goes against Domeniddio
in everything, was very angry when he saw
this; and he struggled with the Padre Eterno, to
prevent Him from dividing the Lord Adamo.
And so the pieces came in different shapes, being
unevenly divided: there is more of man than of
woman ; and the one always longs for the other;
for, until they are joined together, neither the

Why the Rose is Red

man nor the woman is complete and perfect, as
the Padre Eterno designed.

" That was in the first hour. Then came the
business of the animals ; and, when that was fin-
ished, the Lord Adamo and our Mother Eva
walked in the beautiful garden, tasted the fruit,
admired the flowers, and loved each the other
well under shade of trees.

"On the lawn of lilies there were two strange
trees: the one a quince-tree which was called the
Tree of Wisdom ; the other a tree of blood-red
pomegranates, which was called the Tree of Life.
Who ate the fruit of one, knew all the wisdom
that the world has ever known or shall know.
Who ate the fruit of the other, became immortal
like the gods. And the Padre Eterno had for-
bidden the Lord Adamo and our Mother Eva to
touch those trees, though they were free to use all
the rest of the garden at their will.

" At the fifth hour the sun was in his strength,
and the Lord Adamo left our Mother Eva sleep-
ing under the great quince-tree, and went down
to the water-side for coolness.

" Sathanas saw his opportunity. He came into
the garden shaped like a serpent covered with
green scales, having the head and bosom of a
woman, black as the pit. He coiled around the
trunk of the quince-tree, and he whispered to our
Mother Eva, sleeping, while she thought it was a
dream, advising her to eat the quinces, and to
gain wisdom.

why the Rose is Red

" At the sixth hour the Lord Adamo came up
from the water, cool and fresh. He could not
see Sathanas, who was too cunning to let himself
be caught by Man,

" But our Mother Eva rose up in her sleep, and
she mounted on a coil which the serpent made
for her, till she could reach the quinces in the
tree. And, in her dream, she plucked quinces,
and she ate them ; she gave quinces also to
the Lord Adamo, saying that they would make
him wise ; and, in his admiration, he ate them
too.

" So, tempted and deceived by Sathanas, they
disobeyed. Then, to the Lord Adamo and to our
Mother Eva, came wisdom in an overwhelming
torrent. Every good thing they had known be-
fore, and now they knew every bad thing as well,
and they had much fear (for knowledge brings
fear), thinking of the anger of the Padre Eterno
when He should know their sin.

" They wandered through the garden, hand in
hand, weeping, weighted with all the wisdom that
all men have ever had or shall have. Also, they
wept because they knew that they had stripped
themselves of the favour of the Padre Eterno, and
were naked and unarmed against Sathanas.

" While they wandered weeping, the sun began
to lose his power, and at the seventh hour the
Lord Adamo and our Mother Eva found them-
selves again upon the lawn of lilies. But what a
change ! What ruin ! And what horror ! For

Why the Rose is Red

the peacocks had broken all the snow-white lily-
blooms, and trampled down their slender grace-
ful stems, and all the serpent's trail was strewn
with violets crushed and dead.

" Suddenly soft music from a distance floated
through the trees, and the Lord Adamo and our
Mother Eva shivered with fear, knowing the
Padre Eterno to be walking in the garden, and
they hid themselves in the bushes of rosemary.

" Ah ! who can hide from the Signor Iddio
Onnisciente? Then, for their penance, the Padre
Eterno drove the Lord Adamo and our Mother
Eva out into the wicked world, and the garden of
paradise faded like a dream.

" But the angels of the Sixth Quire kneeled
down and confessed, saying, ' O Padre Celeste
e Domeniddio, we have sinned, and yet we
know not how, for the Rose which You deigned
to give into our care has changed, — changed
though we never ceased to watch it, — white
were all its flowers, white as the soul of a little
child, and behold, now, Maesta, some are as red
as blood.'

" The Padre Eterno answered : '^^^ O Domi-
nations, TO WHOSE CHARGE WE HAVE GIVEN

THE Rose, you have no blame. Sathanas has
STAINED Our garden WITH Sin. For, by dis-
obedience, Man has gained wisdom, and wis-
dom brings Sin. And there shall be many
nations of the Man : they will be wise, and
they will sin. And the nations will sepa-

Why the Rose is Red

RATE THEMSELVES THROUGH THE SIN OF ENVY ;
AND EACH NATION WILL MARK ITSELF BY SOME
SIGN THROUGH THE SIN OF PRIDE. OnE NATION
WILL WEAR THE VIOLET FOR ITS SIGN ; AND THE
VIOLETS WILL BE CRUSHED BY THE SERPENT OF

DECEIT. Another nation will wear the

LILIES FOR ITS SIGN; AND THE PEACOCKS OF
PRIDE WILL TRAMPLE DOWN THE LILIES OF
HUMILITY. And yet ANOTHER NATION WILL

WEAR THE Rose for its sign; and cruelty
will stain the wearers of the rose.
Strong shall they be, and some strong
without mercy or pity. they will live on

the lives of THE WEAK, OR FEEBLE, WHOM
THEY MAKE THEIR SLAVES; THEY WILL STAIN
THE WHITENESS OF THE ROSE WITH THE BLOOD
OF INNOCENTS. YET, NOT ALL WILL SIN, FOR

though some will choose the evil, more
will choose the good, and there remain
White Roses for the nation which We shall
choose to crown with glory and honour,

AND TO WHICH WE SHALL GIVE DOMINION OVER
THE WORKS OF OUR HANDS, BENEDICAT VOS

Omnipotens Deus iSi(Ith[i Pater hEiafj^ et

FiLius ^^1^ ET Spiritus Sanctus.'

" Then the garden of paradise was carried up to

heaven, on the wings of the Nine Quires of

Angels. And, once in the life of every man an

angel of the Sixth Ouire brings to him a White

Rose for remembrance, that the mystery of its

fragrant purity may remind him of that lost gar-

why the Rose is Red

den where the gods are waiting for him, if he
wills to come." ^

1 Toto never knew, and never shall know, that the Red Rose
is the badge of the Duchy of Lancaster, — a duchy infested by
as naturally unkind a race of people as the Spaniards. But I try
to have a due regard for the fitness of things, and, in my opinion,
the Badge of the Red Rose suits the Duchy of Lancaster quite
well. I refrain from recording personal experiences, and content
myself with the remark that, until a few years ago, Lancashire
Cotton Mills were run by night as well as by day, two sets of
children being employed, and forced to slave their little lives out
in terror of the overlooker's cane. These innocents were pauper
children, imported by contract from the West and South of Eng-
land, and they only survived amid their appalling surroundings
for an average space of five years (c. f. evidence of Robert Owen
before Royal Commission of 1817). When I reflect that, while
the world rang with shouts of English triumph after Waterloo, a
Lancastrian section of the House of Commons was found to
oppose Bills, — introduced by Sir Robert Peel, for preventing
children, under nine years of age, from working more than
seventy-four hours each week, — I feel very thankful that the
White Rose — the pure prime-rose, for example — is the Rose
of England, and not the infamous local Rose of Lancaster, dyed
Red with the Blood of Innocents, victims of minotaur-manufac-
turers.

About the Witch's Head and

VIIJ

About the Witch's Head and
Santignazio of Loyola

RIDING along the road to Velletri, I re-
minded Toto that something remained
to be said to make a tidy ending for
the tales of yesterday.

" True, sir. Well then ! When Sangiorgio
had killed the dragon, as I have said, San Rafaele
Arcangiolo left him, and returned to his own
place.

" That prince had taken the head of the witch
from Sangiorgio, because it was not advisable to
leave such a dreadful thing in the world. Also,
it was a trophy, a spoil, won from the enemy:
and, when you have conquered your enemy, it is
right and proper to strip him of any weapons
which he might use against you at another time.
What good would a victory be to you, if you left
him those? Therefore, if you be a man of peace,
as every strong man is, be sure to disarm, as well
as to crush, your foe; for, only so, can you re-
move temptation from him, and make certain
peace secure. Well, And so San Rafaele
Arcangiolo wrapped the head of the witch in a
rhubarb leaf and brought it into paradise.

Santignazio of Loyola

" He had not yet determined what he would do
with it; for he considered that it was his first
duty to make a report to San Michele Arcangiolo,
the Great Prince commanding the armies of
heaven, concerning the behaviour of the very
noble knight, Sangiorgio, in face of the Enemy.
So after paying the usual visit of compliment to
La Sua Santita, Sampietro, at the gate, he walked
across the gardens, to the citadel where San
Michele Arcangiolo keeps quarters.

" It was about an hour after sunrise, by the dial ;
and San Michele Arcangiolo, having finished
breakfast, was engaged, with Santeligio, in looking
over two suits of arms which hung on the wall
of his ante-chamber. They were the suit which
he had lent to Sangiorgio, and the suit which
Santeligio had made to take their place.

" The god and the archangel fingered both the
helmets : not a dint or bruise sullied the shining
metal, not a feather was feazed from the high
curved crests. They balanced the unsprung
lance-shafts : not a flaw was found. They tried
the temper of the sword blades, looping point to
hilt, and letting it fly back straight and true.
They tested the keenness of the edges, slashing at
feathers floating in the air, and cleaving them in
twain. And San Michele Arcangiolo said, 'My
compliments to you, O Santeligio. You are a
master-armourer, indeed.'

" Just then San Rafaele Arcangiolo entered. He
was plainly bursting with intelligence; and, hav-

About the Witch's Head and

ing saluted, he cried. ' Ah, well, my Lord
Prince, that was a good fight down there in the
world ! It would have done you good to see
it; for that stripling has shown himself to be a
mighty man of valour. Your highness remem-
bers Davidde Re when he was yet young, before
the Padre Eterno called him to be king? Well!
Just such another as he, is the very noble knight
Sangiorgio ! Without a shade of fear, strong as a
young lion, ruthless as flint ! Also pious ! Also
wise ! Knows his own mind ! When he knew
what was wanted, he made plans. After he had
determined on his course, nothing moved him
from pursuing it. In Africa, he slew the horrid
witch. (I have her head, here, in this rhubarb
leaf.) Then he flew like a swift favonian wind across
the sea, and killed Apollyon, who, in the form
of a dragon, was menacing his home. Yes, you,
Altezza, would be proud of that youth ; as I am !
We shall hear of him again, without a doubt !
He will do well ! '

'" But, the head of the witch?' San Michele
said.

" * Here,' San Rafaele Arcangiolo replied. ' I
thought it well to bring the beastly thing away,
for fear it should do more mischief down there.'

"* Quite right,' San Michele Arcangiolo said.
*It would become an occasio proxima, for certain.
And it is absurd, as well as sinful, to leave edged-
tools within the reach of fools and children. But
what shall we do with it here?'

Santignazio of Loyola

" San Rafaele Arcangiolo suggested that they
should hack it out of shape, and chop it into
little bits, so that it could never be recognised.

"'Very good,' San Michele Arcangiolo said.
' Pass me that sword, if you please, Santeligio.
Thank you. And will your highness take the
other? So.'

"'But what about Santeligio? ' San Rafaele
Arcangiolo said. ' You, Lord Prince, and I who
speak, are inviolable, because, since our creation,
our eyes have always been immortal, but Sant-
eligio was once a mortal goldsmith ; and, perhaps,
it would not be good for him to see the horrid
thing. We cannot do with any stone gods up
here ; and Santeligio is such a superexcellent
armourer that we can't afiford to take a risk of
losing him ! '

" ' Most certainly we cannot,' San Michele
Arcangiolo agreed. He asked Santeligio to be
so good as to take a stroll in the court-yard, for a
few minutes, until the head of the horrid witch
had been mangled beyond recognition. So Sant-
eligio went out to take the air; and the two
archangels shut and barred the door.

" Then San Rafaele Arcangiolo shook the rhu-
barb leaf, and let the head of the witch roll to the
floor. He took up the golden-hilted sword
which Sangiorgio had used in Africa, while
San Michele Arcangiolo grasped the new one :
and the two princes sliced and carved the bane
into strips of flesh and bone, each strip being

About the Witch's Head and

about ten top-joints of thumb in length, and the
breadth of a thumb-nail's moon in depth and width.
Then, they cut cross-wise, dividing the strips into
dice, measuring the breadth of a thumb-nail's
moon each way; till nothing of the head was
left, except a heap of little bloody bits. San
Michele Arcangiolo had had figs to his breakfast,
and the fig-basket was lying empty on the table ;
therefore the archangels spooned up the bloody
dice with their sword-blades, till the floor was
clean and the fig-basket full. They covered it
with fig-leaves, so that none of the bloody dice
were seen ; and they hid it in the folds of a mail-
shirt which hung in a cupboard of the room, and
which was never likely to be interfered with by
any personage of other rank than archangel.

"AH these things having been accomplished
satisfactorily, the world went round and round
in its usual manner; the Regno di Dio con-
tinued to be as it alway has been, is, and ever
shall be; and San Michele Arcangiolo and San
Rafaele Arcangiolo went on attending to their
duties.

" Now, after many hundred years, there was a
foreigner. He was a soldier, a galantuomo, and
something of paino. In a war, he took a broken
leg from a cannon-ball; and a clumsy surgeon
mended it so badly that the leg was alway
crooked. So the galantuomo caused it to be

Santignazio of Loyola

broken again, and mended again; for he knew
that ladies would not love him with a crooked
leg. But it was of no use. The leg never
became straight. And the galantuomo, who
was called Santignazio of Loyola, had much
anguish in his mind, as well as in his leg. And
he found himself to be so ugly that he hid,
and pined away in secret, making himself mis-
erable and ill, because he could not be a soldier,
galantuomo, and paino, any more.

" And, in his wretchedness, he gave his mind

to pious thoughts ; and, then, Madonna showed

him favour, saying that, if the other ladies did

not like his crooked leg, she had no objection

to it; also, that, if he could not be a soldier

in the world, there was nothing to prevent him

from being a soldier of her Son, fighting His

battle against Sathanas. And she spoke such

heavenly words to Santignazio of Loyola that he

became a priest, and set himself to found a

Religion, in the manner of Beato Fra Francesco,

and of Beato Fra Domenico, and of Beato Padre

Benedetto, and of Beato Padre Agostino ; but,

because he was a fighting man by trade, he

made his Religion on the model of an army, of

which he should be the general. He called it

Compagnia di Gesu; and its business was to

wage war on Sathanas and his host, doing all

the dangerous work which other priests could

not do. And Papa Farnese found the idea to

be a good one ; and He blessed the Compagnia

About the Witch's Head and

di Gesu and Santignazio of Loyola as well.
These are the Jesuits, sir; as you will know:
and that was the beginning of them, quite
proper, and most respectable,

" At the end of his life in the world, Santignazio
of Loyola was allowed to enter paradise. He
wore a black habit with ferraiuola, like a secular
priest; and he carried a scroll on which was
written an | Pi $ in a glory with three nails, and

AD MAOBM E)I GlaRAM

and, round his thigh, he wore the chain of
wire to pinch and prick him, and to give him
pain.

" Sir, have you ever noticed that a Jesuit can-
not sit in comfort, except on the edge of a chair?
Also, how he shifts his eyes, and jerks his legs?
That is because of the chain, sir, on his thigh.
Oh, I know; for I have watched these Jesuits
talking to the ladies, sitting on this side and on
that ; twitching back again, crossing and uncross-
ing their legs, and wriggling like quiet serpents
when they believed no one to be looking. And,
once, I watched the bully. Padre Cuni, go to
bathe. He did not know that I saw. He thought
himself to be alone ; and he undressed like that.
But I was lying, with my soul, along the branch
of a tree, hidden in the leaves above his head.
I watched him unfastening his buttons and his
tapes; and I saw him take the wire-chain off

Santignazio of Loyola

his thigh. He offered Deo gratias, as he took
it off; and there were red marks in the flesh,
where it pinched and pricked him. Oh, yes ! I
know many things ! While he washed his head
and arms, I slipped down from my tree, and
sneaked the chain, and fitted it on my leg.
Cristo di Dio ! How it pinched ! On the fat
of the thigh, sir! It was as though my leg
were down the gullet of daemon, sir; and his
fangs nipping my flesh, all hot and numb with
angor; for my leg is rounder, and more spacious,
than the shrivelled leg of Padre Cuni: and the
chain was tight — but, tight! Then I climbed
into my tree again, and watched the rusty crow
come up from the lake, to dress. When he
put on the chain, he said, ' Dio mio, I offer it
up to you ! ' And I laughed, sir —

"Santignazio in paradise? Yes. Well then!

" He did not make a blinding sensation there ;
though, of course, he is a very great saint, and,
no doubt, means well. He was not considered
a dazzler, like Beato Fra Francesco, for example.
Indeed, he was hardly a success; because he
was unsociable, having an air of abstraction,
never answering questions directly; and the
other gods were not quite certain how to take
him.

" You see, sir, this was the fact of the matter.
Down here in the world, he was the General.
Also, the Black Pope. His commands had to
be obeyed. When he said to this Jesuit, ' Do

About the Witch's Head and

this ; ' the thing was done. When he said to
that Jesuit, ' Go there ; ' the Jesuit went as
though Sathanas rode him. Santignazio had
almost begun to regard himself as being indis-
pensable down here ; and he had much fear
lest, while he was in paradise, his Compagnia
di Gesu should find itself like an army without
a leader, and upset all his little plans.

" As though any one man was ever necessary
anywhere, sir, while the Padre Eterno sits upon
His Great White Throne !

" Having this silly notion in his mind, Santig-
nazio of Loyola used to leave the other gods in
their content, and go away to a lonely place on
the ramparts, to nurse his dolour in his leisure
time ; and, during scores of years, he would look
down at his Jesuits in the world, being anxious
to see how they behaved.

" Sir, never cross a bridge until you reach it.
Look for trouble, and trouble you will see.
Whether you look for it, or no, the Padre Eterno
will send you some ; and that is for the health of
your soul. But where is the benefit of looking
for trouble on your own account? I do not
know ; and, therefore, I cannot say.

" Well, then, Santignazio of Loyola made up
his mind that the Compagnia di Gesii was going
to misbehave ; and, so it misbehaved : and he
took two troubles instead of one ; first, the fear
of misbehaviour, second, the consequences of
misbehaviour. Which was absurd.

Santignazio of Loyola

" For, as soon as their first General had left
them, the Jesuits said to themselves, that, if the
Compagnia di Gesu wished to become a power,
the best way to set about it was to get round the
women and children: these being secured, the
men would follow, if only for the sake of peace,
they said. Therefore, they made schools every-
where ; and they taught the children to be sneaks.
That is to say, they made the little ones look each
for the faults of others, and tell tales ; and they
wrote down all the tales in secret books ; so that
they could alway know what kind of a child each
boy, or man, or girl, or woman, had been. Then,
they taught the children that it was only a venial
sin to tell lies which excused themselves or their
friends; and they did not teach them that all
wilful liars will burn in flames for ever and the
day after. But they gave the children lollipops
and ribands ; and the little fools pretended to be
perfectly happy, and to love their benefactors
well.

" Also, the Jesuits made themselves very agree-
able to the women, especially to those who were
rich or powerful, giving them flattery, and oily com-
pliments, or the masterly bullying which women
respect; and they looked not so severely upon
female sins, as did other priests or confessors. So
the women of the world found Jesuits to be most
intelligent men of the world, and no difficulty at
all to deal with ; also saintly ; and they ran after
them ; and they used them for confessors be^

About the Witch's Head and

cause they were smooth and easy-going; told
them everything they wished to know, more even
than they told to their husbands or their lovers ;
sneaked about other women's little weaknesses,
and so on, and so on; until the Jesuits knew so
much that their heads were turned with pride and
vanity, being only human heads when all is said
and done ; and then, when they were giddy and
top-heavy, Sathanas saw his chance, and came
along, and pushed a lot of them over the preci-
pice into — you know where.

" Now, sir, a woman is a piece of the divel, fat
and flaming, — you may see it on the arras at
Deira, if you do not believe me; — and the man
who is rash enough to play with those combus-
tibles will burn his fingers. Look at me ! Well,
you know all about me, sir ! But then I am not
a priest, nor even a sub-deacon like Niccolo. And
I know this, that, if I were a priest, I would no
more have anything to do with a mortal woman,
— no, not the very holiest of them, — unless the
grating of my confessional barred her off from
me, than I would fling the Sacred Host to swine.
I say that. I !

" Well, then, let us return to the paino in para-
dise.

" Santignazio of Loyola saw the mess and
muddle which the Compagnia di Gesu were
making of his plans; and he was sharp enough
to see that, unless something could be done, the
Jesuits would soon wither and die in the stench

Santignazio of Loyola

of evil fame. He saw, plainly, that the spiritual
weapons with which he had armed them for the
interminable conflict with the world, the flesh,
and the divel, though good enough in their way,
were not suitable to this occasion ; and he re-
solved to find some better ones without delay.

" Prayers, and the discipline, they had ; a little,
but not too much, fasting; also, the vows, the
chain of wire, and the Madonna of the Street.
But, plainly, something else was necessary. Oh,
without a doubt! Well now; there was San
Michele Arcangiolo over there. A soldier. Yes.
Surely he must have a lot of spiritual armour
lying about his quarters ! Surely he could spare
some little thing ! If it were only a feather !
What better protection against the shafts of Sath-
anas could the Jesuits have than the invulnerable
plumage of an archangel ! The very thing !

" Santignazio of Loyola left the ramparts, and
limped in the direction of the citadel, being
determined to take the opinion, and the contri-
butions, of the Great Prince, San Michele Arc-
angiolo.

" On his way across the greensward, he met San
Rafaele Arcangiolo, who inquired what ailed him :
for his highness observed Santignazio of Loyola
to have something, more worrying than usual, on
his mind.

" The tale was told ; and San Rafaele Arcan-
giolo declared, without any hesitation, that, in a
cupboard of the ante-chamber in the tower of San

About the Witch's Head and

Michele Arcangiolo, would be found a remedy
which could not be more suitable if it had been
made on purpose. It had been hidden there for
many years. There was no particular use for it.
In fact, they would be glad to get rid of it; and,
if Santignazio of Loyola cared to have it, he
would be very welcome.

" Saying these words, and others like them, San
Rafaele Arcangiolo led the way into the ante-
chamber. From the folds of the mail-shirt which
concealed it, he took the fig-basket containing
the head of the witch carved into little dice, and
covered with fig-leaves. He explained to Sant-
ignazio of Loyola what it was, and what were its
horrible powers ; and he gave it to him to do
what he pleased with.

" Santignazio of Loyola had much joy. He
hardly knew whether he stood on his head, or
his heels, so great was his delight ; and he rushed
off, helter-skelter, to the lonely station on the
ramparts, from whence he had been regarding
the anticks of his Compagnia di Gesu.

" At that moment, there chanced to be a chapter
of Jesuits assembling in Rome; and black robes
long, and black robes short, filled the streets and
clustered round the Church of Gesu, precisely
as you have seen a parliament of crows meet in a
meadow in the autumn.

" Santignazio of Loyola waited while the mass
of Santo Spirito was chanted, and until the whole
Compagnia di Gesu was gathered in the neigh-

Santignazio of Loyola

bouring convent, closely packed together: and,
then, he opened the fig-basket; and he cast
down, into the hearts of his Compagnia, the little
bloody dice of the witch's head, in countless
thousands. Also, as the world went round and
round beneath him, he flung the little bloody
dice of the witch's head into the hearts of Jesuits
whom he discovered in foreign lands ; and, when
no more dice remained, he threw the fig-leaves,
and the fig-basket torn into tiny shreds like
relicks.

"Whenever one of the little bloody dice of the
witch's head touched the heart of a Jesuit, that
heart was turned to stone. It had no more the
feelings of a human heart. It could no longer
pity, or love. It was as hard as stone.

" It was stone.

"They gathered together the fragments of the
fig-basket, and mended it. It was a fine pattern,
they said, showy and capacious; and they had
many copies of it made, wherein much money
was collected.

"And the fig-leaves, in their shameless modesty,
they used for statues, and things.

" Now, sir, you know why Jesuits are as they
are.

" Unable to love, unable to be loved.

" Unable to pity, unable to be pitied.

" Inhuman collectors !

Witch's Head and Santignazio

"Not all like that? True, sir, not all. But
more than many.

" And you must remember three things. First,
Santignazio of Loyola may have missed his aim
sometimes. Second, there have been one or two
new Jesuits since then. Third, the witch's head
was only of a certain size, and there may not
have been enough of the little bloody dice to go
round.

"And a fourth thing to remember is this, —
once upon a time there was a man who sold his
Master for thirty lire. He was called Giuda,
cognominato Iscariote; and he was one of the
Apostles."

About Sodom, Gomorrah, etc.

VIIIJ

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and the Two
Admirable Jesuits

" ^''^\ F course not, sir. I have said the same
■ I again and again about the Cappuccini ;
X^.-^^ if you would only try to understand
me. Why, there would be no Jesuits at all,
supposing that they were all of the species of
those : for the Padre Eterno has a singularly
short, sharp way of dealing with things decayed
and stinking. As long as there is a grain —
only a grain — of goodness in a person or thing,
He is so merciful that He will give it every oppor-
tunity to grow into two, or nineteen, or seven
and thirty grains. But, when the last grain of
goodness goes. His Mercy goes too ; and He just
wipes the altogether rotten bad worthless thing
off the face of the earth, all the same as Ilario,
wiping a dish, wipes it, and turns it upside down.
It is finished.

" Well, then, as long as ten good Jesuits or ten
good Cappuccini remain in the world, the Padre
Eterno respects the Religion of Santignazio, or
the Religion of Matteo-Something-of-Low, for
the sake of those ten.

7 97

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

"Why ten? Well, sir; I will tell you out of
the Sacred Scripture.

" There was the Signer Patriarc' Abramo, a man
entirely well thought of by the Padre Eterno,
Who deigned to ask II Santissimo Salvatore to
go down into the world, attended by San Michele
Arcangiolo and San Rafaele Arcangiolo, to take
a message to the Signor Patriarc' Abramo, and to
accept his hospitality. That good man was very
pleased to see them ; and gave them veal, mines-
tra, lesso, arrosto, e fritto, also pasta, also milk;
everything of the very best which could be
cooked in half an hour. When they had
finished eating, they delivered their message :
and, then, they brought the Signor Patriarc'
Abramo to the ridge of the hill on which his
palace stood ; and they showed him two cities on
the distant plains, asking whether he knew any-
thing about them.

"The Signor Patriarc' Abramo put down the
two waxen torches which he carried in honour
of these Personages ; and he answered that the
cities were cities of ill-fame, where the people
gave themselves to luxuries.

" Wherefore, II Santissimo Salvatore said the
angel-guardians of those people had returned to
paradise, bringing shocking reports, and saying
that the place was not a fit place for them ; and
the Padre Eterno had sent to know whether
things were as bad as that, intending to destroy
those cities altogether.

The Two Admirable Jesuits

" Having said this, II Santissimo Salvatore,
attended by San Michele Arcangiolo and San
Rafaele Arcangiolo, gave an * A riveder La ' to
the Signor Patriarc' Abramo, and went down the
hill into the plain toward the wicked cities.

" But the Signor Patriarc' Abramo ran after
them and stood in their way, saying, ' O Santis-
simo Salvatore, will You destroy the good as
well as the wicked? Perhaps there are a few
good people there — just a little few! Are You
going to burn them with the sinners? Would
that be a proper thing, O Eternal Judge?'

" II Santissimo Salvatore said that He would
spare those cities of luxury, if a handful of fifty
good people could be found there ; or five and
forty, or forty, or thirty, or twenty, or even ten.

" But there were not even ten. Just a mere
four, A man and three women; and one of
those a fool. And II Santissimo went down,
and brought them away in safety, and then the
Padre Eterno hurled lightnings like rain, and
burned up the wicked cities into pumice-stones
and bitumen.

. . • • •

" So I say, that there must be at least ten good
Jesuits, and ten good Cappuccini alive in the
world to-day ; for, if there were less than ten, the
Padre Eterno would put the good ones into a
stricter convent, — the Certosa, per esempio, —
and then destroy the said Religion of Santignazio
and the said Religion of Matteo-Something-of-

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

Low, with a flash of fire, all the same as He
destroyed the wicked cities.

• • • • •

" Well, sir, and I, who speak to you now, — I
— Teodoro — know where two of the ten good
Jesuits are at this moment. The first is called
Padre Ciangli, and he lives in Rome. The
second is a foreigner called Padre Francese, and
he also lives in Rome. They are two of the
ten who save the Campagnia di Gesu from de-
struction by the holiness of their words and deeds.

" It was Niccolo, my brother, who told me the
history of them; and he knows, because he is
there.

" He says that Papa Pecci has a wonderful
love for the Collegio Romano, desiring it to be
the greatest college in the world. Therefore,
He has made a law that the professors who teach
theology must teach it from a book called
Summa Theologia, which was written by a god
called Santommasso many hundred years ago.
The Santo Padre will die for that book, says
'Cola; such is His admiration for the same.

" Santommasso was a son of Sandomenico ;
and the professors of the Collegio Romano are
sons of Santignazio of Loyola; and, says 'Cola,
they dislike to teach the theology of a rival
who is their superior in sanctity as well as in
antiquity.

" But, for all that, the Santo Padre must be
obeyed; and, if those Jesuits were to make any

lOO

The Two Admirable Jesuits

difficulties about teaching that Summa Theolo-
gia, says 'Cola, Papa Pecci would just make a
little stroke with His pen, and there would be no
more Jesuit professors at the Collegio Romano,
but Benedictines wise as owls, or Dominicans,
brothers of that same Santommasso.

" Therefore, says 'Cola, because they did not
wish to lose their situations at the Collegio
Romano, the Jesuits resolved to make the best
of a bad job, very much against the grain, and
teach the Summa Theologia of Santommasso ;
and they did so, just as far as they found to be
convenient, and no further.

" Well, then. Padre Ciangli is a friend of Papa
Pecci, — a very great friend indeed, who has given
Plim good advice many times. You know, sir,
that during long years La Sua Santita has chosen
to shut Himself up in His palace on the Monte
Vaticano, from which station He will not move
on any account, not even when it is Sol in Leone,
and, of course, as long as He keeps Himself like
that. He can neither see with His own eyes, nor
hear with His own ears ; nor can He surely know
what goes on in the City and the world. He
must trust to what other people choose to tell
Him. He knows Padre Ciangli to be a man of
undeniable probity. Therefore, He makes him
speak of everything that happens outside the
Palazzo Vaticano.

" One day, says 'Cola, Papa Pecci chanced
to inquire how the Jesuits of the Collegio

lOI

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

Romano were doing with the Summa Theologia
of Santommasso; and Padre Ciangh answered
that they were doing as well as could be ex-
pected under the circumstances; for, he said,
being Jesuits, with a theologia of their own,
they had to learn the Summa Theologia of San-
tommasso, before they could teach it; and this
was a very bitter pill, for which they thanked
La Sua Santita,

" And then he went on talking of all things and
some others, and presently, says 'Cola, he told
Papa Pecci that there was a certain little Padre
Francese of the Compagnia di Gesu, who knew
the Summa Theologia of Santommasso by rote,
from egg to apple, and was altogether mad
about it, rejecting all other species : for which
reason the Black Pope had put him away in an
obscure little village, where he had nothing to
do but to say mass, baptise, catechise, confess,
communicate, marry, anoint, viaticate, and bury
a matter of fifty rusticks, hoping, in this way, to
keep him from doing more than enough mis-
chief with his madness for the Summa Theologia
of Santommasso.

" When He heard this, says 'Cola, Papa Pecci
took twelve large pinches of snuff in honour of
the Santi Apostoli ; and He passed the box to
Padre Ciangli, chuckling as though His heart
would break, so keen was His joy at hearing of
a Jesuit who nourished a devotion to the Summa
Theologia of Santommasso, as vast, as fervent

1 02

The Two Admirable Jesuits

as His Own. Also, He made Padre Ciangli go
incontinent with a message to the Black Pope,
commanding this little Padre Francese to be
summoned to the Palazzo Vaticano without
delay, because the Santo Padre had an impor-
tant thing to say to him.

" In course of time, Padre Francese came to
Rome from his foreign village; and he was
brought into the private cabinet of the Santo
Padre on a Sunday, after supper. He was
speechless. He could only kneel down and
weep, says 'Cola, so profound was his humility;
but Papa Pecci was very kind to him, and gave
him a good glass of red wine, and patted his
hand, and made him sit on a stool, all quite
happy and comfortable ; and He blessed him
so many times, that, at last, the good little Jesuit
became less shy and timid ; and then La Sua
Santita was free to pick his brains, and to find
out how much he really knew of the Summa
Theologia of Santommasso.

" Once started on his favourite subject, the
diffidence of Padre Francese fled away; and
he spoke words of wisdom with authority, as
one who knows. Such grace and charm was
found in his discourse, that the Santo Padre sat
as though enchanted. All night La Sua Santita
listened ; for it was evident, says 'Cola, that this
little Jesuit was under the special protection of
Santommasso, who had deigned to show him
all his god-like mind.

103

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

" And the very next day, Padre Francese was
appointed by Brief, Professor of Theology at the
Collegio Romano.

" Well, says 'Cola, that was all as it should be.
But Padre Ciangli got into the bad books of his
superiors for bringing Padre Frances^ to the
notice of Papa Pecci, and was ordered confine
himself to his cell in the convent at the Gesu,
as a punishment for chattering with unbridled
tongue. Meanwhile, at the Collegio Romano,
there was the Brief. Nothing could be said
against that. And Padre Francese ascended the
chief pulpit, and lectured on the Summa Theo-
logia of Santommasso.

" Now it was the habit of these Jesuits, says
'Cola, to teach the Summa Theologia of San-
tommasso, just as Santommasso had written it,
until they came to a point where it differed from
their own Theologia; and then they taught
their own Theologia, and neglected the Summa
Theologia of Santommasso.

" But very different was the behaviour of that
dear Padre Francese. He, says 'Cola, taught the
Summa Theologia just as Santommasso had
written it; and, when he came to a point where
it differed from the Jesuit Theologia, he just
trampled on the Jesuit Theologia, and taught the
Summa Theologia of Santommasso ; because he
had read his Brief, and he knew what Papa Pecci
expected of him.

"The superiors of the Collegio Romano thought

104

The Two Admirable Jesuits

him horrible. But, says 'Cola, they knew him
to be simplicity itself; and, in three days' time,
they appointed him Spiritual Father of the
Collegio Romano ; which means that he had
to sit all day, in a little room at the top of the
stairs, to give advice to students bringing him
their confessions or spiritual difficulties; and,
of course, while he was doing that, he could not
lecture, which, says 'Cola, was precisely what
they wanted. Jesuits are accustomed to sudden
changes ; and Padre Francese was a good Jesuit,
so he obeyed his orders, while the old professors
occupied the pulpit of Theology, and affairs
were as they were before Padre Francese left
his foreign village.

" So a week passed; and, says 'Cola, suddenly
Papa Pecci remembered that He had not received
a visit from Padre Ciangli, for some time; and
He sent a flunkey-of-the-cloak-and-sword to fetch
him.

" ' Where have you hidden yourself, carino,
all this time?' Papa Pecci said.

" ' If you please, Santita, I 've been naughty ;
and they gave me confinement to my cell, by
way of penance,' Padre Ciangli answered.

" * Ah, bad one ! At your age too ! Oh, fy ! —
But what was your crime? ' Papa Peeci asked.

" ' Well, Santo Padre, if You must know, I told
You about our Padre Francese; and they said
I was a gossip and a chatterbox,' Padre
Ciangli answered.

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

"'But that's all nonsense? ' Papa Pecci said.
* Why you did Us a great service. That dear
Padre Francese is a jewel — a treasure. We
were delighted with him ; and We appointed him
to be professor of theology in the Collegio
Romano, We'did. We won't allow them to shut
you up any more, Padre Ciangli. No. Certainly
not. You are far too valuable to Us. Yes, you
are. Tell your father-rector that Leo, Pater
Patrum, XIIJ, commands you to come here
every day till further notice. But there, —
perhaps it will be more civil if We write a little
note to him. Paper? Yes. — Pen? Ah, there.
— Ink ? Thank you. — Pounce ? — Now then.'

* • • • •

"And, says 'Cola, Papa Pecci wrote a little
note, of a kind which prevented Padre Ciangli
from being shut up again.

" When He had finished writing. Padre Ciangli
said, —

" ' But, Santita, did n't I hear You say that
You had appointed our Padre Francese to be
professor of theology? '

" * Utique,' Papa Pecci replied.

" * Then when will he began to lecture? ' Padre
Ciangli asked.

" * Naughty Padre Ciangli ! ' Papa Pecci said.
'See what you have missed by being confined
to your cell. Why, Padre Francese has been lec-
turing since Tuesday ! To-day is Saturday ; and
he will lecture again on Monday, We suppose.'

io6

The Two Admirable Jesuits

"' Pardon me, Santo Padre,' Padre Ciangli said.
* Padre Francese lectured on Tuesday, and on
Wednesday, from eight o'clock till ten o'clock
in the morning. At noon on Wednesday, he
was appointed Spiritual Father; and, since then,
he has purveyed spiritual direction and advice,
in a little room at the top of the stairs, while
another one of our fathers has occupied the
pulpit of theology. Forgive me for contradict-
ing You, Santo Padre ; but, when one sees the
Pope ill-informed, I hold it to be a duty to make
Him well-informed.'

" * Hm-m-m,' Papa Pecci said. ' Are you cer-
tain of your information, carino?'

" ' Perfectly certain, Santita,' Padre Ciangli
answered.

'"Ve-e-e-ry well!' Papa Pecci said. 'Now
this is some Jesuit trick; and We are going to
beat the bottom out of it. Just go outside,
Padre Ciangli, and bring to Us Monsignore del
Ltipo.'

" So Padre Ciangli went and found Monsignore
del Lupo, the Majordomo of the Apostolic
Palace (you remember the affair in the porch of
the Fiorentini, sir? Ha! Hal), who, says 'Cola,
is as clever and cunning a man as ever lived,
subtile as a serpent, and harmless as a kitten.
And Papa Pecci told him to go to the Collegio
Romano, and say to the father-rector that La
Sua Santita knew all his little capers, and com-
manded him to take Padre Francese from the

107

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

situation of Spiritual Father, which situation any-
used-up old fogey was competent to fill, and to
put him back again into the situation of professor
of theology, which he was to hold at the pleasure
of the Sovereign Pontiff and of no less, and with
the strictest injunctions that he should preach
the Summa Theologia of Santommasso, the
whole Summa Theologia of Santommasso, and
nothing but the Summa Theologia of San-
tommasso, Also, says 'Cola, Monsignore del
Lupo was to say, that Padre Francese must
come to the Palazzo Vaticano, every Sunday and
Thursday, to talk to the Santo Padre. And,
lastly, the father-rector would be kind enough
to remember that, if La Sua Santita caught him
at his games again. He intended to send a couple
of red hats to the Collegio Romano, one for
Padre Francese, and one for Padre Ciangli, and
to give them His Own title of Protector of the
Collegio Romano for the remainder of their
lives; and, then, where would the father-rector
be?

" So now, you know, sir, why my brother
Niccolo (who is himself a student at the Collegio
Romano) is right when he boasts that bishops
value the students of that college before the
students of any other university. You see they
have Padre Francese there.

• • • • •

" But I have another little word to say about
Padre Ciangli.

io8

The Two Admirable Jesuits

" La sua eccellenza will know the Jesuits to be
very fond of getting legacies, — so fond, that
they take no shame at touting for them; and
they hang about the dying for an opportunity of
squeezing them. Of course it is a very good
thing to leave money for masses for your miser-
able soul, or for the poor. If you can afford to do
so; well. If not; it does not matter. But, of your
own free-will, you must give, without suggestion ;
for the Padre Eterno only listens to the man who
gives cheerfully. The good gifts are those which
you give unasked ; and a gift, obtained by beg-
ging, counts to neither giver nor receiver.

" Well, Padre Ciangli did not like to see his
brother Jesuits touting for legacies. Indeed, he
did not want the Compagnia to be rich in money
or in lands. He thought they were better poor,
like the fraticelli, for he remembered that II
Santissimo was poor — but, poor! Therefore,
this good Padre Ciangli laboured to persuade
the Jesuits, his brothers, to give up begging for
legacies; and, when he found that they persisted,
in spite of all the beautiful words he said, he
did his best to discourage rich people from
leaving their money to the Jesuits, A very holy
man, he was, in truth !

*' Now there was a Signer Inglese who lived
in Rome. He was rich and grand as the sun.
He had no wife, nor child, nor any family, nor
friend. The Jesuits soon found him out, and
behaved to him with the greatest politeness.

109

About Sodom, Gomorrah, and

" One morning, he was in perfect health. In
the evening, he took a pernicious fever. And*
on the third night, he lay a-dying.

" The Jesuits wondered what would happen to
his wealth; for they had not known him long
enough to talk to him about his testament.

" They brought a notary, with ink, and pens,
and parchment; and they clustered round the
dying man, ready to put in writing any words
which he might choose to say. He was raving
in a delirium, shouting obscenities according to
the custom of all very holy persons in their
fevers; but the doctor said that his senses would
be given to him again, at the moment before the
grey angel cut the thread which bound his body
to his soul.

*' And so they waited, watching for a legacy.

" Padre Ciangli heard of this ; and he hurried
to the palace of this Signor Inglese as fast as his
legs would carry him.

" Just at the moment when he came into the
room, the dying man became calm, and de-
manded a suck of a citron. The doctor brought
it.

" One of the Jesuits made him a little bow,
saying, * Sir, we are your good friends from the
Chiesa di Gesu ; and you are going to die. Here

The Two Admirable Jesuits

is the notary; and we are your good friends
from the Chiesa di Gesu.'

'* The dying man exerted himself. He could
only say, ' All I have to the Chiesa di Gesu.'

" The notary wrote it, and put a pen in his
hand, that he might sign the will.

" He signed it.

" As he wrote the last letter of his name. Padre
Ciangli said very solemnly, * What ! All to the
Son, and nothing to the Mother?'

" The dying man wrote, after Gesu, — e Maria.
And the grey angel cut the thread there ; and
he died.

" Sir, the Jesuits got no legacy that time ; for
the wealth of the Signor Inglese went, according
to his last testament, to the Chiesa di Gesu-e-
Maria, which is a church not belonging to the
Jesuits at all, but to a religious Order whose
name I do not know.

" And the Jesuits gnash their teeth at that
dehcious Padre Ciangli,"

III

About Some Kings

WHEN we arrived at Velletri, break-
fast was prepared at a respectable
albergo. Vittorio and Otone, with
Ercole, had ridden in advance to look after that,
and to get their food. These three attended to
my wants; while Toto, and his brother Guido,
Ilario, and Desiderio took refreshment.

Afterward, I slept for a couple of hours;
and the boys went to amuse themselves in
the gardens of a palace having most wonderful
marble stairs and loggie, while Toto came with
me, to wander about the city, and to look at the
girls. Several wore their hair in a pretty fashion,
— curls drawn high in a mound through a wreath
of violets, from which a black lace veil flowed
behind. I don't know what Toto thought of
them, because he was grave, and did not
speak; but I do know what they thought of
him, because they said it out loud. It was not
singular.

In a quiet back-street, I became transfixed.
Over the doorway of a large building, I saw a
sculptured tablet which bore a coat-of-arms
and an inscription. The device was the royal

112

About Some Kings

blazon of England, with crown, supporters, mot-
toes, all complete. The inscription taught me
that this college was founded by no less sublime
a potentate than Henry VIIIJ ; by the Grace of
God and the favour of the Apostolick See, of the
sub-urban diocese, Cardinal-Bishop of the Holy
Roman Church, Vice-Chancellor ; and, of Great
Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of
the Faith,

I gave way to my emotions. And because I
enjoyed them thoroughly, I imparted them to
Toto, at full length. He accepted them with
the greatest gentleness; saying, when I gave
him a chance, that his grandfather had told him
the histories of that King, and of those others,
having received the same from the father of his
father, whose sister had known the brother of
the King whose name was over that door, and
who, himself, had had charge of a vineyard
belonging to that same Cardinal-King. Where-
fore, he knew many things.

I bade him cherish the things he knew until
the evening; because I wished to be alone with
reminiscent thoughts inspired by my experience
in that narrow quiet back-street of Velletri.

• • • • •

At the albergo, later, I drank a little wine and
ate a piece of bread for merenda: while Toto
ran through the city to collect six of my seven
divels: and, before sunset, we started homeward.
Ercole, with Otone and Vittorio, rode a quarter
8 113

About Some Kings

of a mile in front; Desiderio, with Ilario and
Guido, close behind; and Toto on my left
hand.

When we smelt the open country, I gave leave;
and he said, —

" The father of the father of my grandfather
spoke to him when he was a little boy, and the
father of my father spoke to me when I was a
little boy ; and he told to me the histories which
his father had told to him. That is what I am
telling to la sua eccellenza now.

" Formerly, there was a king in England ;
and, in his youth, he had been a sailor. Also
christian.

" Sailors have no cunning, being simple and
honest. It is the sea which makes them so. If
you prefer men like that; well. If not; they
offend you, and you go away.

" And, in those days, the people of England
had the misfortune to be hereticks. So, when
this sailor became king, he wished to make his
subjects christian ; and he gave orders.

" But religion is one of those things which you
cannot have by giving orders : and the hereticks
rebelled against their king. He was a sailor;
honest, and simple, as I have said. He could
not understand why his orders should be dis-
obeyed. And he insisted all the more. But
the hereticks were strong ; and they drove their
king away into another country : and they took
a heretick king to be their governour.

114

About Some Kings

" The true king sent his son, called Giacomo, to
fight and win his kingdom back again, but the
hereticks forced that prince to fly for his life to
the foreign country where his father kept his
exile.

•' After a time that king died ; and this Giacomo
became the true king. He, also, sent his son,
called Carolo, to fight and win his kingdom back
again, but again, the hereticks prevailed, driving
that prince back to his father, who lived in Rome.

" Then that king Giacomo died, and this prince
Carolo became the true king of England. But
he was sad, heart-broken by failure, and there
was no spirit left in him. He also lived in Rome,
instead of fighting for his right; and there he
gave himself to drunkenness and lechery.

"When the false king in England heard of this,
he said that, if king Carolo could be kept like
that, he would never be able to make himself
unpleasant by coming after his crown; and the
false king sent hereticks to Rome, in secret, with
bags of gold, telling them to buy courtesans, and
to convey these to the true king Carolo, to cheer
him, and to make him spend his whole life in
drunkenness and lechery; so that he might get a
bad name among his friends, and that news of
his habits might be carried to the people of Eng-
land, to make them hate him for his wicked-
ness, and never fight for him again.

" Yet, sir, what true man will blame that un-
happy king Carolo ? Not I, for one ; nor the father

115

About Some Kings

of my father, nor the father of the father of that.
I grieve for that king; and, if I had been ahve,
I would have sat upon his doorstep until I could
have seen him, and then I would have cheered
him, and have told him how kings should comport
themselves. But I curse the false king — you,
also, sir? What happiness! But I might have
known that, even though you had not said a single
word. And it would be like carrying indul-
gences to Rome, for me to have suggested such a
thing. Sir, in truth, the false king was one of the
bastards of Sathanas, taking after his father. He
was a Tempter, a proximate occasion of sin to
the true king Carolo. Therefore I curse him ! "

Toto reined up at the roadside, and spat
scorching curses over a hedge at the Elector of
Hanover.

" Well, sir, and those hereticks came into my
province, looking for beautiful women ; and they
kidnapped the wife of the grandfather of my
grandfather, also the sister of him ; taking them
to Rome, because they were more beautiful than
any women ever seen ; and giving them, as cour-
tesans, to king Carolo.

"The sister escaped before he touched her, and
ran away across the mountains to her home.
There she went into the convent where she died.

" After two months the wife of the grandfather
of my grandfather returned also. She was
ashamed. She came at night to her husband,
like Pompilato in the Credo, quite unfit for the

ii6

About Some Kings

society in which she found herself. She said that
she had sinned, because she was poor; and she
had earned gold enough to buy many vineyards,
and she kneeled down to her husband, giving him
the bag of gold, and she prayed for pardon.

" Sir, he loved her. And he remembered
that II Santissimo showed mercy to Santamaria
Maddalena, being truly contrite. He took his
wife and the bag of gold. He brought them to
a deep pool of the river. He bade her to cast
her sin from her, with the bag of gold ; and, when
it sank into the dark water, he put his arms
round her, and kissed her, and took her for his
wife again.

" When her child was born, she died ; but the
boy lived ; and he was the father of the father
of my father.

■ • • • •

" When king Carolo died, they buried him in
Rome, and because there were no heirs of his
body born in wedlock, Enrico his brother became
the true king of England. But this king was a
bishop, and a cardinal-duke as well, and, there-
fore, he did not want to make himself irregular
by fighting for his kingdom, shedding blood. He
said that, in the sight of Him, with whose Sanc-
tion kings do reign, he was the king of England,
— and that was the truth. — But, seeing that his
people did not want him, being content with the
heretick king which they had chosen, he would
never trouble them, nor wear his crown. But,

117

About Some Kings

all the same, he maintained that he was their king ;
and so he called himself until he died, and was
buried with his brother and his father, kings both,
in the church of San Pietro on the Monte
Vatican© ; where you may see the tomb of these
three kings guarded by two grieved English boys
in marble, and may read the names and styles of
them, engraved in fine letters at the order of the
Santo Padre.

• • • ' • •

" Well, sir, it was told to this last Majesty of
England about the grandfather of my grand-
father, and his wife and the boy, and the bag of
gold. And the Cardinal-King had him in
honour, and deigned to give the largest vineyard
of the diocese into his charge, by which he lived
in comfort all his life ; and, also, he saved money
enough to buy a vineyard in his own province
for the boy who was the father of the father of
my father. And there is my last word, sir. It
is not a story, but a history of a verity; and I
have told it to la sua eccellenza as I had it from
the father of my father, who had it from the father
of his own father."

• • • • •

We rode at a quicker pace for some distance.
I pondered over the strangeness of things.

ii8

Ferretti and Heresiarch

About Papa Ferretti and The Blest
Heresiarch

I SAID that I could find no words in which
to curse the turpitude of the false king, who
had robbed king Carolo of his crown, and
blasted his reputation, helping him to descend
from his high estate, and to live, a monument of
evil fame, for endless ages.

I said that the sins of king Carolo could not
be named in comparison with those of the false
king.

" No, sir, " Toto said. " And there was no
one to say a sharp word to that false king. Some-
times, when a man is altogether wicked, or only
stupidly wicked, the Padre Eterno puts it into the
mind of someone to go and say a word so sharp
that it cuts him clear away from his wickedness,
or from his stupidity; and, then, everything goes
well. But, for the false king, there was no one.

"Have I ever recited the case of the heresiarch
who was corrected by a sharp word from Papa
Ferretti? No?

*' Well, then, behold an heresiarch who came
to Rome. He had great fame in his own coun-
try, being learned, and suave, and of an elo-

119

About Papa Ferretti and

quence to make a cow attentive. He was of a
skinny little figure, with a pimping little face,
having uncertain eyes, and little tufts of white
whisker in front of his ears. He wore, at all
times, a carnival-habit of black, with buttons all
up his little legs, and a black skirt like a balle-
rina, also a black coat of priest, and a marvel-
lous mitre, high, and round, and swelling, and
polished, with a curly brim, all black, — where-
fore all the little ragamuffins ran after him,
expecting him to do tumbling, or other diverting
tricks, in some piazza.

" Because he was in Rome, he needs must do
as the Romans do; and, by some means or
another, he was admitted to an audience of the
Santo Padre.

" Papa Ferretti treated him very kindly, allow-
ing him to speak of many things ; but He saw
him to be vain and insincere. Therefore He
gave him words of wisdom, and good advice, in
the most courteous manner possible.

** When the audience came to an end, that
heresiarch, with his impertinence of bronze,
demanded that the Santo Padre should bestow
His Benediction.

" ' But, Signore,' Papa Ferretti said, ' how
can We give you Our Benediction?'

"The heresiarch answered Him, ' Santita, do
You not bless Your children?'

" ' Certainly We bless Our children,' Papa Fer-
retti said ; ' but you have not the happiness of

1 20

The Blest Heresiarch

beino- one of those. How then can We bless
you, as We bless them?'

" The heresiarch answered that, having come
to Rome, he would like to be able to return to
his own country, saying, that he had been hon-
oured by the Benediction of the Santo Padre.
He was not particular about being blessed in the
form with which La Sua Santita blessed His chil-
dren. But, surely, surely, he might have a Ben-
ediction of some kind.

" ' Very well,' Papa Ferretti said ; 'kneel down,
and We will bless you.'

" The heresiarch kneeled down.

" The Santo Padre waved the signs of the
cross at him; and blessed him, as though he
were incense, using this form, ijlljll^ Ad Illo
benedicaris in Cuius Honore cremaberis."

121

About the Love which is Desire

XIJ

About the Love which is Desire and the
Love which is Divine

THE evening grew in glory as we rode,
a sky all rose and lavender, with pur-
ple hills floating in a mist of gold. A
voluptuous sense of beauty, and serenity, per-
vaded me.

" Toto, tell me about Love," I said.

" Sir, to serve you."

He meditated during a minute.

" The eyes of la sua eccellenza have seen
Madonnina in many shapes. Among these, you
have seen her as a Mother, nursing her little
Baby. That is Joy. You have seen her in a
Pieta, with her Dead across her knees. That is
Grief. And you have seen her with her splendid
Son standing by her throne, being of the age of
fourteen years. That is Love : and He is called
Divin Amore.

" There is another amorino, who is sometimes
mistaken for that One : but, in reality, he is a
daemon; and he is called Desire. In appear-
ance, they are the same ; in action, they are the
same. But in effect they are not the same.

" It is a matter of heart.

122

And the Love which is Divine

"One or the other comes into your heart;
and, there, he makes his home. It depends on
your own will, whether you admit him, or no.
If you keep him out, your heart withers away,
till it might as well be the heart of a Jesuit. If
you admit Desire, you regret it afterward. If
you admit Divin Amore, you do the best action
of your life, and you are never sorry any more.
Yet, it is a difficult task to tell the one from the
other, and to decide which shall be your guest ;
unless you can persuade your angel-guardian to
give you good advice. For, at first, they come
to you in the form of a little child, sweet, inno-
cent, and asking for a home. You take in this
little child, and show him kindness; and he
returns your fondlings and your kisses and
caresses, till you love him so that you find you
cannot do without him. In your heart, he grows
to boyhood ; and, on the sly, when you are not
looking, he makes weapons, — arrows, and a bow,
like an archer, — and wings bloom upon his
arms, so that he may fly away, and leave you,
when the moment comes : but, of this, you have
no knowledge. And, then, at last, he gains his
full strength; and he is vigorous, and terrible;
and he arises in his majesty; and, with his
arrow, he wounds your heart, and strikes you
down, his victim and his slave.

"When he has flown away, your heart burns,
and craves a medicine to heal its wound. And
you search for this, holding out your hands,

123

Love Desire and Love Divine

weeping, yearning, until you find relief. And,
only now, can you be certain of the god whose
wound you bear,

" The wound itself is the desire for happiness.
And, if the god, who gave it, was Desire, then you
will strive and struggle for the happiness of your-
self, and of yourself alone. But, if Divin Amore
has wounded you, then there must be another
beside yourself; and, for that other, you will
gladly strive, gladly suffer, gladly die, or very
gladly live, which is the hardest thing of all.

" Desire is Selfishness. Divin Amore is
Sacrifice."

124

Cats and Dogs always Litigate

XIJ

(a) Why Cats and Dogs always Litigate

** ■"■ ^k ESIRE makes you greedy for food,

I I avaricious for money, or power, or

M ^ houses, or vineyards, or farms, and

a lecher, hot with lust for women.

Desire was the lord of Giuda detto Iscariote, who

sold his Master for thirty lire ; of the prince in

antick times who fed his fishes with the flesh

of living boys and girls, to please his palate with

their fine rich flavour; and he was the lord of

Sathanas, making him so proud that he rebelled

against Domeniddio, striving to dethrone Him,

and to take His Closed Crown.

" That was very long ago ; and this was the
manner of it. First, Sathanas was Chief of the
Second Quire, that is to say, of the archangels.
And, one day, it happened that the said Sathanas
robbed the mirror which belonged to La Su-
prema Maesta e Grandezza. Looking into that
mirror, he saw his own reflection, all of the most
magnificent and noble, as you might expect
The more Sathanas looked, the more splendid
did he find himself.

" Then came Desire, sweet and innocent, ask-
ing for a home.

125

why Cats and

" After a few years, Desire had become a
power ; also, he had made his weapons : and,
at last, he let his arrow fly into the heart of
Sathanas.

" The wound itched, till Sathanas knew that
nothing on earth could satisfy him. Looking
daily at his image in the mirror, it was easy to
persuade himself that his beauty deserved a bet-
ter fate than that of being just the Chief Arch-
angel, and no more. After that, he took no rest
until he had persuaded half of the other angels
and archangels to agree with him.

" Then, with Desire, the terrible, always goad-
ing him, he laid a plot to drive the Padre Eterno
from His Throne : and, using bones, and stones,
and other enchantments, he took the shape of a
dragon, many miles in length, and having a
hundred heads. In this guise, he came suddenly
upon the Court of Heaven. There was not time
to beat him back, for he gave no warning.

" But, in an instant, the Holy and August Per-
sonages changed their shapes into the shapes of
little creatures such as no one would suspect;
and they hid in caves under the holy mountain,
till the time should come for dealing with Satha-
nas as he deserved. The Padre Eterno took
the shape of a white ram, as Lord of the flock.
Madonnina became a fish, in honour of her Son.
San Michele Arcangiolo became a raven, that
grave and noble bird. San Gabriele Arcangiolo
took the shape of the heron which gave its name

126

Dogs always Litigate

to the city of Ardea, in order that he might fly
swiftly as the messenger of the Padre Eterno.
And, in Hke manner, the others changed, as well.

" But Desire, the terrible, drove the hundred-
headed dragon, Sathanas ; and he came ramping
round the holy mountain, hunting for his prey.
He saw the heron ; but he did not know it to be
San Gabriele Arcangiolo ; and he passed on.
He saw the raven ; but he did not know it to be
San Michele Arcangiolo ; and he passed on.
When he came near the white ram, he did a silly
thing, for he knew not Who it was ; and he was
passing on : but the Padre Eterno hurled light-
nings at his hundred heads, smiting him with
thunder-bolts, till he was bruised and beaten
down.

" Then, the Holy and August Personages re-
sumed their Proper Shapes, hastening back to
heaven, and making preparations for a battle-
royal.

"First, that He might know His enemies from
His friends, the Padre Eterno, by an Act of Will,
turned the rebel-angels and archangels black,
and red, and brown, and green ; while the com-
pany of heaven shone all yellow-gold and silver-
white. To San Michele Arcangiolo, He gave the
rank of general-in-chief, who led his radiant
army forward chaunting Quis tit Dens!

" Now, when the Padre Eterno blasted Satha-
nas with lightnings, the fire of them dried up the
little brook where Madonnina was hiding in the

127

Why Cats and

form of a fish ; and, as a fish, without water, dies,
she changed her shape again, taking the appear-
ance of a snow-white cat, gentle, superb, and
gratia plena. Desire, the terrible, marked this ;
and it made him think. He shook Sathanas to
his senses, and made him do away the dragon
shape and form himself like a black dog. In an
instant it was done. Then Desire made Sathanas
to know that the snow-white cat was, possibly, a
Personage; and that to capture her, and to keep
her as an hostage, might enable him to come to
terms with the Padre Eterno, — perhaps, even,
to win that rank and power for which he had re-
belled.

" So, when, the snow-white cat began to move
away with dignity, and to ascend the holy moun-
tain, showing neither haste nor terror, the black
dog barked with fury, and hemmed her in. But
she sprang upon a rock near by, and swelled her
tail, and arched her back, and spat upon him ;
and, being altogether most terrific, she kept her
foe at bay. When the black dog presumed to
come too near, she struck him in the face, and
made him yowl. All that the fool could do was
to jump about and bark around her station, until
his army should come to his assistance.

" Meanwhile, San Michele Arcangiolo made
short work of the rebels. He drove them out of
heaven and chased them down the holy moun-
tain. They resembled a torrent, all black, and
red, and brown, and green, flying before the irre-

128

Dogs always Litigate

sistible might of legions shining silver-white and
yellow-gold. Squadron after squadron of the
rebels, in disorder, dashed by the little rock ; too
terrified and too confused to listen to the frantic
calls of Sathanas ; until, at last, the triumphant
host of heaven swept along : and, then, the snow-
white cat sprang upward, changing into the
glorious form of the Madonna. At this the
angels waited while they said their Salve Regina,
and legions of them bore her, on their wings, to
her throne in heaven. Other legions continued
in pursuit, driving the black dog Sathanas, and
his minions, to another mountain very far away,
where the earth opened to engulf them. There
San Michele Arcangiolo took Sathanas, in his
own shape (which is the shape of an archangel
but of a different colour, being black, and red, and
brown, and green, having a hundred cubits of
height, and wings not of feathers, but of skin like
the wings of bats and dragons), and he chained
him in the lowest pit for a thousand years, with
the chain of Selfishness and Pride, which Desire
had made him forge.

" From these histories, la sua eccellenza will
understand why cats and dogs should always liti-
gate. And, also, you will know about Desire,
the sweet, the sly, the terrible."

129

About Divinamore and

XIJ

(/3) About Divinamore and the Maiden

Anima

" ^ LTOGETHER another Personage is
Divinamore.

" He, also, conies to you, looking
so sweet, so dear. He, also, grows to boyhood,
working secretly the while in the home which
you have let Him make with you. When His
wings have blossomed, and His full strength is on
Him, He, also, lets His arrow fly into your heart,
and makes Himself your Lord ; giving you a
wound so dire that you must spend your life to
ease its pain.

" But, as the wound of Desire receives relief, —
but never a cure, — when you labour for your-
self; so the wound of Divinamore can be made
to cease from aching only when you search for
pain, and loss, and trouble for yourself, that some
other may have happiness. And, sir, — it is a
strange thing to tell you this, though it is the
naked truth, for Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-
Quires said it, and he is not a liar, — the more
base, or treacherous, or unworthy, be the person
for whose happiness you labour; and the more
anguish, or shame, you seek to take upon your

130

The Maiden Anima

shoulders; so much the more will you win relief
from the aching of the wound of Divinamore.
" Sir, — in two words, — ■

UNDER-GO, OVER-COME.

" Now I will speak of Divinamore and of the
maiden Anima ; also of their victory over Desire.

"Anima was a little maiden, white as an
almond, fresh as a young carnation. She lived
in the world, alone with her sisters.

" Divinamore stood up there in paradise, near
the throne of Madonnina. Serene in the vigour
of his youth. He was as beautiful as spring.

" He looked upon the lovely maiden ; and He
wished her well.

" Since she was a baby, He had watched her ;
and, one day, He saw Desire go and ask her to
give him lodging in her heart. She was only a
little girl ; and Desire seemed only to be a little
boy.

"Divinamore saw Desire wind himself about
her, till she yielded gladly to him. He saw
Desire grow potent, and prepare his weapons,
while the maiden bloomed. He saw Desire arise
in his full length, and strike his arrow in her
heart. Then He knew that Anima must own
Desire for her lord.

" Divinamore became very sad ; for He loved
Anima, and wished to have her for His own.

" Wistfully He looked to His Mother for advice,

131

About Divinamore and

being the Best of sons. Then, Madonnina taught
Him ; and she spoke, and said, * My Son, only he
can win the maiden Anima whose heart is
pierced by the arrow of Divinamore.'

"Then He drew an arrow from His quiver;
and He struck it deep in His Own Heart, giving
Himself the wound of Divinamore for the sake of
the maiden Anima.

" All day, His wound tormented Him : and,
when the night was dark. He spread His plumage,
and descended swiftly, silently; and He came to
the maiden Anima, as she lay sleeping on her
bed, dreaming dreams with which Desire had
filled her. And He took her in His arms, and
whispered in her ear, saying that a god was
come to give her happiness, and to win her for
His Own.

"The maiden Anima heard Him. She was
glad ; for she longed for admiration above all
things. And, though she could not see Him, for
the night was dark, she had great happiness in
the fragrance which He breathed, and in the god-
like loveliness of form which she could feel, and
in the youthful ardour of His embrace ; but,
chiefly, when she told herself that her beauty had
made her the beloved of a god.

" Every night, for many nights, He held her in
His arms ; and she never saw Him ; for He
always vanished before the break of day.

" Every day, for many days, she longed for
Him, because He gave her happiness.

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The Maiden Anima

" And every night, for many nights, He prayed
to her to be His Own true love.

" Often she asked Him for His name ; for she
was proud at thinking that she had a god for her
lover, and she wished to tell her sisters of this
honour.

" But Divinamore answered that true love went
hand in hand with perfect trust ; wherefore, she
should trust Him, and never seek to know His
name.

"This gave her no content: in secret, she
resolved to satisfy her longing.

" There came a night when Divinamore lay
sleeping by her side. She rose ; and went to
fetch a lamp, that she might feast her eyes upon
Him : for she did not love Him truly, but only for
the honour and the happiness she had of Him.
Here was selfishness, caused by the arrow of
Desire.

" And when she brought the lamp, she saw the
Lad who lay upon her bed ; and she trembled
very greatly, because she knew her Lover to be
Divinamore Himself: and, as she trembled, a
little drop of oil fell upon His shoulder from the
burning lamp ; and He awoke ; and before her
eyes, He vanished, going back to paradise, because
Anima had shown herself to be unworthy.

" Then she wept, and moaned her loss, until
her sisters ran to know the reason of the noise.
To whom Anima answered, that Divinamore
had deigned to love her, and to visit her by night

133

About Divinamore and

in secret, but now He had deserted her, and for
that she wailed. But the envious sisters scoffed,
saying that she hed; and, not Divinamore, but
some lewd hob, some stripling of the farmyard,
was her lover. Therefore they gave her blows,
and drove her out into the world, calling her a
liar, and a wicked girl.

" Desire was her lord. It was he who made
her suffer. She thought only of herself; and
she longed for Divinamore to return, and give
her happiness.

*' But Divinamore loved her truly : and, though
He might not let her see Him, nor grant her the
happiness of His embraces, until that He had
conquered her, and had made her give Him per-
fect trust, yet the wound of His own heart forced
Him to resolve to labour alway for her welfare, to
spare her pain, and that she might gain happiness
in another way.

" And, as she wandered, homeless and forlorn,
Divinamore went with her ; and she never saw
Him.

" By His Mother's throne, He left His quiver
and His bow. He stripped Himself of all His
god-like panoply. He came into the world, in
secret, to serve His beloved Anima as her slave.
When she climbed the rocks of the mountain. He
went before, lifting sharp stones from her path,
until His arms were aching. When she passed
through forests. He thrust back thickets, and tore
a road through thorny briers, until His hands

134

The Maiden Anima

were bleeding. Across the streams, He laid His
young body for a bridge. He shielded her from
storms, placing Himself between her and the
sting of blasting rain,

" All the time, she was wailing to herself that
it was not a fitting thing for a maiden who had
had the honour of the embraces of a god to be,
as she was now, homeless and forlorn. Surely
this was not what she deserved, seeing that she
was not a common wench. So, by degrees, she
forgot the happiness of her Lover's arms, and
longed for fortune and for fame.

" Then, Divinamore led her, though she never
knew He was her Leader, to a distant country,
where the people took her for the most beau-
tiful maiden ever seen, and worshipped her.

" She could not speak their language; but she
understood their gestures ; and she knew that
they admired her loveliness. To herself, she
said that here, at last, was the place where
fame and fortune would be found.

" Divinamore remained in the outskirts of
the crowd, where Anima could not see Him.
Swiftly, He went from one man to another; and,
as He passed, He whispered, in each ear, that the
maiden was fit to be a queen. And, as the
whisper dropped into each ear, men turned to
view the whisperer ; and they saw no one but a
Lad, Whose delicate skin was tanned by sun and
rain, and blue with bruises. Whose hands and feet
were sore through travel and toil. They could

135

About Divinamore and

not think that He had said those words : and
they took them for a sudden thought, and not
a voice. They shouldered Him aside. He fell
beneath their feet. They trampled on His weary
limbs. But, anon, He raised Himself, and went
on, unabashed, whispering that Anima was fit
to be a queen.

" At last, they caught Him in the act ; and they
demanded who He was that dared to speak of
Anima.

" He said, ' I am called Divinamore ; and I love
her.'

" They mocked Him for a fool, asking what
might be the measure of His Love?

" He said, ' I love the maiden Anima more
than I love Myself.'

" They jeered at Him, spitting in His face,
and beating Him upon His breast. Unwilling
tears streamed from His lovely eyes. His flesh
quivered in agony. But He did not quail.

" They dragged Him to the middle of the
crowd ; and thrust Him face to face with Anima ;
to whom they bowed respectfully, making signs
to ask whether she knew the Lad.

" But Anima perceived that she was held in
honour; and Desire, her lord, made her happy in
this honour, desiring continuance of the same.
Therefore, when she saw the Lover, Whose arms
had once embraced her, in His sorry plight, she
was ashamed of Him ; and she threw her head
backward, denying that He was anything to her.

136

The Maiden Anima

" But Divinamore cried, undauntedly, that
Anima was fit to be a queen ; for He knew her
thoughts : and He had bound Himself to serve her
at all costs, by reason of the arrow in His heart,
which made Him choose to suffer, if that only He
might win happiness for His beloved.

" ' Give her a royal robe,' He cried, * a crown,
a sceptre, and a throne.'

"For His persistency, they beat Him on His
breast and back, tearing His tender flesh, until
eight rods were broken. Into His forehead, they
thrust eleven sharp spikes of barberry. But He
cried the louder, ' Give her a royal robe, a crown,
a sceptre, and a throne.'

" They tried to test the measure of His love,
saying, ' If that You love the maiden Anima more
than You love Yourself, what will You sacrifice
that we should crown her queen.'

" Instantly, He answered, ' A limb for every
sign of sovereignty.'

" Then, with great respect and honour, they
led the maiden Anima to the palace; and there
they dragged the Lad who claimed to love
her.

" In the doorway, they felled Him to the ground.
Her lord, Desire, filled Anima with pride; so
that she trod upon the crushed and broken body
which, formerly, had been her joy.

" They made the Lad stand up ; and they signed
to Anima that she should mount the throne. She
ascended the steps, and took her seat. They

137

About Divinamore and

nailed the right foot of Divinamore to the thresh-
old.

" They placed a crown upon the head of Anima.
They nailed the left foot of Divinamore to the
threshold.

"They placed a sceptre in the hand of Anima.
They made Divinamore stretch His right hand
straight and high; and they nailed it to the
lintel.

"They robed Anima in royal robes, woven
from the wings of butterflies. They made Divin-
amore stretch His left hand straight and high;
and they nailed it to the lintel.

" Anima sat as queen.

" She saw the Victim, who had sacrificed Him-
self to give her glory, strained stiff, as on a rack,
before her eyes ; His hands and feet transfixed by
nails, His brows bleeding at eleven wounds. His
body torn by eight rods, and his Heart pierced
by the arrow of true love.

" Divinamore was come to the end of His pil-
grimage. He had given, to His beloved, the
happiness that she craved. He had reached
the threshold of His love's abode. From that
threshold, His eyes fed upon her beauty. And,
there, nails held Him fast.

" But Anima was a crowned queen, and, in
her heart, were happiness and pride.

" Madonnina in paradise looked at her with
anger. She seized the quiver and the bow, which
Divinamore had left beside her throne. She

138

The Maiden Anima

fitted an arrow on the string. She shot at the
proud heart of Anima.

"So sure was her aim, so swiftly did the happy-
arrow fly, mindful of its errand, that it cleaved
its way into the very wound which, formerly,
Desire had made. There, it purged the maiden's
heart from every taint of selfishness which had
held her in bondage to Desire,

" And behold a marvel !

" For now the heart of Anima was pierced by
the arrow of true love ; and now she had no
happiness in regal state, purchased with so dear
a price. She only longed to suffer for Divin-
amore.

" She left her throne, and ran to Him. She
prayed that He would say what she must do to
ease His pain.

"He looked upon her with dimmed eyes. His
body drooped in languor. He was dying.

" She was kneeling at His feet; but He could
not raise her : for nails held His hands.

" He murmured that He gladly bore the tor-
ment of His wounds, if that they gave her happi-
ness.

" But she said that she would not see Him
suffer ; and that she wished to cast away her
royalty, to set Him free.

" She said that the nail in His right foot had
bought her throne ; but she would not have it at
that price. She stooped down, and drew out the
nail.

139

About Divinamore and

" She said that the nail in His left foot had
bought her crown ; and she cast away the crown.
She stooped down, and drew out the nail,

" She said that the nail in His right hand had
bought her sceptre; and she cast away the scep-
tre. And, having raised herself, she drew out
the nail.

" She said that the nail in His left hand had
bought her royal robes, woven from the wings of
butterflies ; and she cast away the robes. And,
having raised herself, she drew out the nail.

" So she renounced her royalty.

" She had nothing, now, which she could offer
to Divinamore, except herself, and her true love.
She wondered whether He would consider these
to be worthy gifts.

" She hid her face in her hands.

" In her shame, she trembled.

" She did not dare to hope.

" She feared that He could never love her any
more, seeing how that she had made Him suffer.
But she waited : and, with her tears and kisses,
she healed the wounds of the nails, the bruises
of the rods, the gashes on His brow.

" Divinamore was free. The vigour of His
youth returned.

" In His arms, He took His beloved Anima.
She felt Him burn, she saw Him shine, with true
love.

"The royal robes, woven from wings of butter-
flies, which she had cast away, were lying at her

140

The Maiden Anima

feet. Her Lover signed the cross upon them.
The butterflies, who had given their earthly
plumage for those robes, came back from para-
dise; and, on their radiant wings, Divinamore
and the maiden Anima ascended from the world.

"Before the throne of Madonnina the maiden
kneeled ; and she prayed for pardon, to the
mother, for the sufferings of the Son.

" But Divinamore raised her.

" She flung herself into the furnace of His love.
And in that fervent heat, she changed into a
butterfly having wings as white and fragrant as
an evening lily.

" And Divinamore wears her on His heart, for
ever, as His Own true love."

141

Summer

Estate., pueri
si valent, satis
discunt.

Mart.

143

About Doing Little, Lavishly

XIIJ
About Doing Little, Lavishly

IN early summer, at the very beginning of
my explorations along the eastern coast,
something happened to rouse me from
that lethargy into which temperamental indo-
lence had let me slip, after my life's great
disappointment.

For three weeks, I have been busier than any
seven and thirty bees ; thoroughly enjoying toil.
Allowed to consume latent energy, I taste relief.

In this walled-city of 3016 souls, — I will never
give its name, lest puny tourists, having no
necks, should come to mar its quaint and digni-
fied simplicity with bicycles, curved spines, and
chequered stockings on gross legs, — the clergy
are persons of extreme discrimination. Observ-
ing something of capability, they had the wis-
dom, and the grace, to give it scope. Therefore
they merit admiration.

The matter has been the designing of an
ecclesiastical procession. That service is per-
formed here every year on the Festival of
Corpus Dominj ; and, this year, finding me, with
my assistants, staying in this wonderful little
walled-city, — I will never give its name, — and
10 145

About Doing Little, Lavishly

hiding a talent under a bushel of misanthropy,
the clergy had compassion.

It was Monsignore Argo Ermogene who be-
gan civilities. Having seen me with my seven
divels daily, at the mass of dawn, this White
Son of Hermes paid prompt visits to his new
parishioners. I found him to be simpaticissimo;
first, because of the angelick beauty of his gentle
eyes and the rose-leaf delicate mobility of his
thin lips ; secondly, because he recognised the
singular perfections of my creatures, their serene
reserved nobility of port, their bright gravity of
regard, and the antick breeding of their mien.
He was one of the few brave souls who are not
afraid to honour their Creator by frank admira-
tion of His noblest works. And, when he had
discovered of what unhappy species was the
man to whom he spoke, — a man who hates,
loves, and excruciates, sick of forced aseity, —
this diplomatick prelate treated of things ecclesi-
astical, in general, and of the Infiorata of — let
us say Citta Senzanome, — in particular. Lastly,
he asked me, point-blank, would I lend my boys,
and design the pageant of the year?

So, for three weeks, I have been utterly happy
in being useful : and, to-night, my procession
has passed in the beauty of holiness from the
Duomo, up the steep street of the Angels to
the antient Church of The Four Holy Crowned
Ones, through the Gate of the Seven Sleepers,
to the Convent of Friars Minor, along the

146

About Doing Little, Lavishly

Avenue of Cypresses, and by the Gate of Santa
Sumforosa to the Dominican House in the
Street of the Seven Martyred Sons; thence,
returning to the Duomo : — a matter of a mile,
covered in two hours of bliss beyond all expres-
sion (to me).

I could not do much. I am aware of some
of my limitations. I attempted little; but I
reserved no cache of wit or gold, nor avid
energy of soul or sinew, to give perfection to
that little. I knew myself to be the very last
person in all the world likely to satisfy II San-
tissimo, or His worshippers. Yet, for this very
reason, I grasped the opportunity of exempli-
fying the proverb, ELkos "yCvecreaL iroXXd Kal
uapd xb €lKds.

Three weeks ago, I chose beautiful children
from the schools, youths and maids, men and
women, from trade-guilds and confraternities,
six handsome courteous young officers from the
citadel. To each, I gave the character of some
god, some angel, with raiment and emblems
proper to their estate. It was not an occasion
for using ancient frumpery. I wanted all things
new: and, having drawn designs, chosen text-
ures, and cut out antick garments in accord
with knowledge gained from minute secret study,
I had them made. I rushed away across Apulia
to Rome ; where I bought jewels ; and gilded
rosy discs embossed upon the rims with god-
like names, for haloes ; and also wings — real

147

About Doing Little, Lavishly

large wings — to spring from and to cover with
feathery plumage the backs of boys, and to
grace their waving arms, so that they might
float along the way with the lightsome gait of
God His birds. I took nothing that I found.
I drew designs, and had them made.

A procession is not a snake of frowsy nobodies
huddled in couples, who scurry nervously, shame-
facedly, impudently, along the middle of the
road, unblushingly whining through their noses,
to the Omniscient, disgraceful ditties.^

A procession is a visible act of worship, and
demands display. Also, Holy Mother Church
ordains liturgical hymns of splendour incompara-
ble — unsurpassable. Therefore, I displayed a
dignified procession on both sides of the street,
with recognisable living effigies of renowned
personages, who chaunted Pange Lingiia without
end. Each subject was separate from the others ;
each group displayed alone, coming slowly and
with imposing gravity, along the wide bare strips
of road-side, leaving clear the open decorated
middle. On the foot-pace, citizens knelt in

^ " Hail sainted Mungo, liail !
Our city's patron, hail !
Thy loving help shall ne'er
Thy faithful children fail.

• a • • •

" Mungo ! By thy sweet name
Our little ones we '11 call ;
Often on them and us

Let thy rich blessing fall ! "
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About Doing Little, Lavishly

crowds, or at windows, gay with arras and
verdure. Straight lines of lanthorns stretched
across the streets, to aid the sunset and the
stars, — straight Hues, uncrossed, without the
degradation of a foul festoon.

Last night, all instructions had been learned,
all rehearsals finished ; and this wonderful little
walled-city gave itself a cleansing so complete
that no conception of its scope can be formed
by cold Northerners who soap in daily tubs.
Wells and the waterfall yielded liquid purity
to lave the streets. Under rocks, beyond the
walls, the river whitened with the merriment of
scrubbed swimmers. And in the Duomo and
Santi Quattro Coronati, souls were purged by
penance. At Ave Maria, bullock-carts came in
from all the country-side, loaded high with
greenery, and stacks of wild-flowers, and the
spoil of gardens. Through the short night these
were sorted by their colours. At dawn, traffick
being stopped, an artigiano drew in chalk, upon
the road, armorials, ten cubits in width on
diapered fields with bordures. After mass, citi-
zens filled these designs with petals of appro-
priate hue, and foliage, well watered, working
all the day; and, at sunset, there was a carpet
of flowers, twenty cubits wide and a mile long,
laid up the middle of the streets, on which, yet
undefiled by any foot, borne by His priest, the
Maker of the flowers should deign to go. This
is the carpet, famed throughout Apulia, which

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

gives its name to the Festival of Corpus Dominj
in this walled-city, — the Infiorata of Citta Senza-
nome. I have not the happiness of any share in
that. The procession alone was of my small
design.

At Ave Maria, bells clanged, and cannon
boomed; and the procession left the Duomo.

In the centre (not at the end), Monsignore
Argo Ermogene, attended by arcidiaconi, bore
the Host in an ostensorium, beneath a canopy
whose six poles were supported by six warrior-
saints, each in his proper mail : to wit, San Gior-
gio, argent, a cross potent gules ; and San Maurizio,
gules, a cross potent argent; San Vittorio, azure,
a cross potent or; and Sant Esuperio, vert, a
cross potent or ; San Martino, gules, a cross
potent or; and San Teodoro, or, a cross potent
gules. All round and round the canopy went
a guard of angels, floating to and fro on winged
arms — twelve youths playing Pange Lingua
on majestick twenty-four-stringed arciliuti, and
twenty boys who carried lamps, or offered in-
cense, or scattered flowers.

In front of these came those of the company
of heaven who are patrons of the city : —
On the left, Santa Sumforosa and her Seven
Martyred Sons, San Primitivo, San Giustino, San
Crescenzio, San Giuliano, San Nemesio, San
Stactco, Sant' Eugenio, waving palms and wear-
ing tunicks, white with a stripe of purple, and
purple-strapped sandals : — On the right, my

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

seven boys, presenting the Seven Sleepers,
Children of Light, San Massimiano, San Marti-
niano, San Costantino, San Dionusio, San Gio-
vannino, San Serapione, San Giamblicho, each
in a silken kithon of white from knee to shoulder,
open on the right, girded with golden girdles,
their listless heads low, garlanded with white
poppies, carrying palm-plumes and white poppy
sheaves.

In front of these : — On the left, the Four Holy
Crowned Ones, San Severe, San Severiano, San
Carpofero, San Victorino, each in a toga of ver-
milion dye, diademed with parsley, and bearing
palms : — On the right, San Paolo with his sword
and palm, San Pietro with his palm and keys.
All these wore haloes, which marked their state.

In front of these, came the confraternities of
Sangue Preciossissimo, in white and red ; of Santo
Spirito, in parti-coloured red and yellow ; of Ma-
donna, in white and blue ; of Buona Morte, in
black ; all with liripiped hoods, and hanging
escalloped sleeves. They bore banners, ban-
nerols, and standards. Brothers and Sisters of
the Third Orders went before them, in habits,
grey, or white and black; and were, in turn,
preceded by the regimental band of Bersaglierj
playing Pange Lingua, and by the crucifers and
thurifers of the Duomo and of Santi Quattro
Coronati.

After the angels round the canopy of the
Host, glided pale sisters of the poor with tapers.

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

Then went a crowd of clergy, friars and monks in
holy habits, seculars in copes, escorting the Lord
Archbishop, and chanting Pange Lingua with-
out end. As the procession passed, the citizens
rose from their knees, and followed in serried
ranks behind the Signor Sindaco and his coun-
sellors.

• • • • •

I watched the pageant wind along the ways.
After the last Benediction, the city has given
itself to fire-works, and to dance, and song ;
while I have entertained my Seven Sleepers, in
their habits as they lived, to a supper in the
garden. They were very wide-awake now ; and
tired, — but, tired ! Natheless, merry to the hair
of their curly heads, and rightfully : for, in truth,
when one has done fine things, one may not
think of hell.

• • • • •

In the starlight, young eyes glittered, and
white teeth gleamed on peaches. Never was
complex crescentine beauty so discreetly mani-
fested, as in this dim garden, where black cypress
soars into the eternal star-sown blue, furnishing
grey-green lawns with outlines, indefinite, myste-
rious, with infinite, imperscrutable distances.
Against the retirement of this back-ground, the
long contours of limbs, of old ivory, or having
the transparent nacreous pallor of the flesh of
turbot, and the modelling of supple forms, ac-
cented by clinging of silk, or revealed by a

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

kithon's falling folds, undulated in inconstant
curves.

I watched the Seven very vigilant Sleepers eat
and drink their fill ; indulging, for once, in com-
mensation, to avoid the seven and thirty painful
sensations which one experienced in the teeth of
one who looks on while others eat. With the
effort of giving the boys the unusual treat of a
cigarette apiece, I became alert enough to listen
to their chatter. It is one of the greatest intel-
lectual luxuries, in all this banal world, to listen
to the enjoyment of delightful youth wearing its
crown of gold, to the natural conversation of
well-conditioned boys, naif savages who live
under a discipline of rigour mitigated by sundry
hours of freedom utter and entire. At least, that
is my present opinion, which I trust may be
unchanged when I am permitted to grow older
and wiser.

Toto distributed cigarettes, and returned with
the box. He strewed himself on the grass by
my chair, and put his chin on his hands, looking
up at me to read thoughts, to anticipate desires.
I was silent and dark to him.

" I find this antick garment to be convenient
enough, sir. Why don't we wear such things
now?" he said.

** Shows too much of you," I answered.

"That is a thorn thrust into my eyes, sir: I
did not know that there was too much of me,"
he said, with pique.

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

" Not for me," I hastened to explain, " but for
people of a kind."

"Yes. There are some fools," he meditated.
"Then the garments are useless, sir? It is a
pity; for they must have cost a bag of money.
May I know, sir? "

I said that the silk was Chinese of the finest;
and that one had to pay for fine things.

"You have spent many bags of money, sir? "

I agreed. And frowned when I thought about
them.

"Too many, sir? "

"No. Of course not. Not too many; but
many. And there will be no more for the pres-
ent," I said.

He nipped the lighted end from his cigarette,
and laid the remainder by.

" Then, sir, let us wear these garments inside
your walls, and in the country where fools are
few. So we shall need no new clothes, nor shall
we ruin you until you get some money."

I laughed. " No pockets in a kithon," I said.

" Pockets, sir? Why, here is the very finest
pocket that I have ever seen ! " He sat up, and
thrust hand and arm into his bosom, through
the open right-side of the kithon. " Can you
put all your arm into any of your pockets, sir?
No, indeed. But I can into this one; and the
belt keeps all secure. The handkerchief-of-my-
nose has been there all night, sir; and, if I
draw the buckle a little tighter, I could even

154

About Doing Little, Lavishly

keep my small cigarette quite safely. Look,
sir ! " He rose on his knees, and tightened the
strap with judged moderation, high round the
flexible flatness of his waist. " Oh, yes, sir. Do
let us wear these garments, sir ; ah, now, do ! "

Toto, like this, was irresistible, — irresistible as
an Irish girl.

" Then, sir, we will return these periapts before
they take a damage." (These were little gold
bullae, hollow balls of about the circumference
of a florin. The lower half unscrewed, and
would serve as a receptacle for some tiny treas-
ure. They were worn on a slim gold chain round
the neck, hidden in the breast of the kithon.
I copied them from a genuine example of cen-
tury IJ. A.D. ; and had them made.)

" No," I said. " I have caused your names to
be cut on them, with my raven ; and all of you
are to keep them for remembrance."

" For remembrance of what, sir? "

" To pray for the giver."

He took the jewel from his throat, and handed
it to me, standing very stiff and stark.

" Beast," I cried, " then you won't pray ? "

" I want nothing to remind me of my pleas-
ures," he said.

" Urchin of distraction ! " I ejaculated. ** Then
take it as a reward for behaving like a very good
boy. And speak to the others for me."

" Many thanks, sir." He lowered his lips and
kissed my ring. Then he turned. " Attention ! "

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

he cried. Half a dozen limber youngsters froze
into rigid marble statues in the cypress shades.
"Don Friderico is so gracious as to make us
presents of these golden periapts, in reward for
good behaviour. In return, we promise to recite
Ave Maria, and the rest, three times every night
and morning for his intention. Who ever for-
gets, will strip to my lilac twig. Understand?
Well, then, come and render an action of graces
to la sua eccellenza."

They crowded round me with such beautiful,
unveiled eyes. I explained the bullae to them,
and showed how they unscrewed. Toto immedi-
ately vanished, running toward the villa.

It is delicious to give presents, I think.
Dainty little Guido nestled against my feet. His
colourless hair, his dark, colourless pallor, lent
enchantment to the stainless whiteness of his
bluish-shining, chrusoberul eyes. He screwed,
and unscrewed his bulla.

" I think I will ask the friar of Toto for a small
relick. And it shall hide in this gold ball on my
breast alway, to keep me holy," he meditated,
as Toto returned with a something of satisfac-
tion, of triumph on his brow.

"A relick?" Toto said. "Yes; very excel-
lent, o 'Dino mio. I have one already: but I
shall demand from Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-
Quires yet another, — a relick of Sangiorgio,

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

whom I adore because he is Protector of the
English. Yes, I will have that, if I am allowed
to choose. And thou shalt have one of San-
tamaria Maddalena, patron of our dear Don
Friderico, 'Dino mio,"

I asked what relick he had already. He sent
the boys away before he answered.

" What but seven hairs of your head, sir? "

I felt my pate. " I never gave you those,"
I said.

" You did not give them, sir; but I went into
the house and took them."

I tugged a handful of hair, in perplexity. " I
wear no wig, Toto."

"No, sir; but there is always your comb."
He left me, and joined the others, who were
playing within call.

• • • • •

There was no sound in the sleeping city, now.
The night was warm as an embrace ; no moon :
but heaven a miracle of starry splendour. I find
much of unapproachable, of precious, in these
great stars of the summer night. I leaned back
in contemplation.

• • • • •

A loquent silence brought my eyes to earth.

There was going to be a fight, or, at least,
a pale. I encourage both ; and I said, " Let
me see."

Ercole and Desiderio stepped aside, disclosing

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

Toto and Vittorio at defiance. Vittorio awaited
assault with grave unconcern, hand on hip, in
the exact pose of the great serene gumnan-
dropais, in that bhss-full Primavera of Alessandro
Fihpepi. He had supreme and just confidence
in the superiority of his more than four cubits,
and in the merit of his indomitable sinew. Toto
faced him, tense and glaring, resembling the
slender Wrestler of Herculaneum about to spring.
Then Vittorio shot out arms (at the biceps
his circumference measured fourteen top-joints
of thumb), and, catching Toto by the os ilii,
heaved him over his head. But my agile
Perseus of Cellini (the Waxen Sketch in Palazzo
del Bargello, not — oh, not — the Bronze Abor-
tion in the Loggia dej Lanzj) was master at that
game. There was an instant's vision of grace
describing an aerial curve, and an almost im-
perceptible manoeuvre. Vittorio turned : but
Toto, also, had turned in air, and alighted on
his feet. With swift spring he flung himself upon
the Greek, knees gripping ribs, torso towering
high, pressing back those mighty shoulders;
and, at the sudden resistless shift of weight,
Vittorio fell to the ground.

" One point all," I said, " and enough for
to-night."

I rose. Kithones were belted on, and five of
the Seven Sleepers sent to bed. But, to the two
who strove, I said, " Reasons?"

Each looked at the other.

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

" Toto considered me to have spoken insuffi-
ciently of la sua eccellenza," Vittorio said,

" Vittorio considered me to have spoken more
than sufficiently of la sua eccellenza," Toto
said.

Here was a lark !

The garden was too cool for a story from
heated persons in silk kithones. I drove them
indoors, and busied them with the scaldino to
keep alight my huqa.

• • • • *

" What have you said, Vittorio?"

" I was so happy to have my golden bulla,
sir, that I described la sua eccellenza as being
like a king giving with both hands."

"And Toto finds that to be objectionable? "

Toto gave a contemptuous sniff.

" Speak ! " I said.

" Vittorio, sir, is a good enough little thing,"
(Toto was about as high as his pythian throat;)
" but he has no discrimination. He pays you a
compliment, meaning well ; but the compliment
is clumsy, because it lacks fine justice."

" O, sir," Vittorio protested, " I do assure you
that I said the very best words which I could
find in my mind ! "

" Erre ! Err^ ! Atom ! Other minds hold other
words, sir ; and Vittorio has not said those.

sir."

" Then what were your words, Toto? " I asked,
" Sir, I said that the actions of la sua eccellenza

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

in the matter of the procession, and especially in
the matter of our presents, reminded me of the
actions of San Gabriele Arcangiolo."

" And I answered that it was a matter of un'
eccellenza, and not of an archangel," phaidroneos
interrupted.

"Wherefore, I hurled the blasphemer to the
earth," Toto proclaimed.

Lurid demonstrations flashed over the huqa.

" Pax ! " I commanded. " Explain your par-
able, Toto ; that wisdom may enlighten the mind
of Vittorio."

" Wisdom is the daughter of Experience and
Remembrance, and those personages are not
related to Vittorio."

" Explain, explain ! " I commanded fiercely.

*' Yes, sir, I will explain; indeed I will. Well,
then, sir, and Vittorio, San Gabriele Arcangiolo
is a prince whose admirable motto is Do little ;
and do it lavishly. It is plain that his highness
has taught these words to la sua eccellenza ; for
no one ignorant of them could do what you have
done in this walled-city. O, I have seen with
these my eyes; and I know."

" Then you consider the procession to have
been suitable? "

" More than suitable, sir. It was unnecessarily
suitable ; just as lentils are better than beans,
barley than lentils, yet beans are good enough.
There would have been a fine procession here, if
you had been in England, sir. There was a fine

1 60

About Doing Little, Lavishly

procession here a year ago. There always has
been a fine procession here, for many hundreds
of years. But, this year, comes la sua eccellenza,
all sad, with half-shut eyes of a dreaming prisoner,
who has no interests in this walled-city, has
never seen it before, possibly will never see it
again, who cares neither for stick nor stone nor
soul of it, and who is quite unnecessary to its
welfare ; yet, on a sudden, dreams have died,
and opened eyes look brightly at reality; and
you spend bags of gold, and run here and there,
all day and night, and work — but, work ! — to
the astonishment of all, save of me — Teodoro ;
because I know that San Gabriele Arcangiolo
has said, ' Eccellenza, do this procession. Do
this little thing. And do it as lavishly as I, who
am an archangel, have done in the case of other
little things.'"

"What other little things? " I asked, to keep
myself from falling on sleep.

" Well, sir, there was the case of the three boys
who sang as they blessed the Lord in the furnace
of fire."

" Does Vittorio know that history? "
" In part, sir ; but not the part of Toto,"
Vittorio distinguished.

" Then tell him, Toto, and tell me."

" Sir, and Vittorio, you shall know of a wicked

king who lived in antick times. He was called

Nabuchadonosor Re; and his heart was full of

pride. Praise did not satisfy him; honour and

II i6i

About Doing Little, Lavishly

admiration did not fill the chalice of his desire ;
he wished for nothing less than to receive the ado-
ration which is due to II Santissimo, Therefore, in
the courtyard of his palace, he set up an image of
himself carved in gold ; and he placed musicians
with their instruments near by; and he made an
order that, when the band played at noon of
the dial next day, all the citizens must come and
perform a genuflection before the golden image.

"This was done: and Nabuchadonosor Re sat
at his window, watching to see that his order
was obeyed. The guardians-of-the-publick-safety
went into all the houses, driving out the people,
young and old, and rich and poor. And crowds
came, and passed before the statue, and per-
formed their genuflections ; and Nabuchadonosor
Re began to feel perfectly satisfied.

" But, after noon, there came three boys, bloom-
ing with virtues, driven by the guardians-of-the-
publick-safety, and, when they passed the statue,
they put out horns at it ; they even shot out the
middle finger of an open hand in ultimate con-
tempt; but they did not kiss their fingers, and
they made no genuflection.

" Nabuchadonosor Re went mad with rage,
desiring to do these boys the worst of mischief,
because they hurt his pride. Therefore, he
threatened them with the fire of unlucky wood ;
but they only laughed at him, and said his order
was a stupid one which they would never obey.
Genuflect to II Santissimo, yes; also, to His

162

About Doing Little, Lavishly

Cross on Feria Sexta in Parasceve; also, to our
Lord the Pope, and to a bishop throned, because
these are His ambassadors. But, genuflect to
just a common king, — who asked? No, no!
Not all boys are fools ! Not all, Vittorio, not
all!

" Nabuchadonosor Re put both his thumbs
down hard ; and carnefices came, who seized these
three brave boys, and tied their arms behind
their backs, and their hats upon their heads,
and wound tight cords over their shirts and
brakai from their shoulders to their ankles,
so that they lay like babies swaddled on their
boards. Also, Nabuchadonosor Re directing
them, other carnefices heaped up logs and fag-
gots of trees which bear no fruit, high as the
window of the wicked king, adding barrels of
pitch, and barrels of oil, to make a memorable
bonfire. They lent it light from torches ; and,
when the red flames roared, three pairs of carne-
fices took each pair a boy by his shoulders and
his heels, swung him to and fro with all their
might, and sent him flying into the heart of the
fire. And, so fierce was the heat, so uncontrol-
lable the blaze, that, in the very act, furious
flames licked up those carnefices, and spewed
them out as ashes. And Nabuchadonosor Re
looked on from the window of his palace.

" Other personages, also, looked on from
another palace.

'* High above the stars, San Gabriele Arc-

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About Doing Little, Lavishly

angiolo was sitting in a loggia on the wall of
gold, amusing himself with Sant' lurcamiele
Arcangiolo, the Prince of Hail. These two sons
of oil, whose station is near the Lord of the
whole earth, were telling holy tales, like this
one; when there came a whiff which made
archangelick nostrils quiver, and voices still.

'• ' Does your highness smell fire? ' Sant' lurca-
miele Arcangiolo inquired.

"The other answered that he did smell fire.
* I suspect some careless divel has left open the
door of the Brown Kingdom,' he said.

" But Sant' lurcamiele Arcangiolo was peering
out of the loggia. ' No,' he shouted, * it is those
people in the world who disturb us with their mis-
chief. See ! ' He pointed down to the palace
of Nabuchadonosor Re.

" The two archangels looked, and they saw the
carnefices light the fire, and the brave boys,
bound and helpless, lying near. At the same in-
stant, the Signor Iddio Onnisciente deigned to
give illumination, and made these princes to
understand everything that they saw. And the
Prince of Hail said, ' I can't stand this ! Those
boys must not be burned!' His highness, no •
doubt, remembered the proverb which says, Man
is dearer to the gods than to himself. Sant'
Uriele Arcangiolo came flying with the Book, in
which he shewed that the death of these three
brave boys was not yet due. Sant' Azraele Arc-
angiolo came flying also, saying that he had

164

About Doing Little, Lavishly

received no Order to take away the breath of
their breasts.

" * This is my affair,' Sant' lurcamiele Arcan-
giolo said. ' I shall go and be a storm, blasting
that fire with my hail, that I may make the
wicked king look silly.'

" ' No,' San Gabriele Arcangiolo shouted, for
he had an idea. ' Not you, but I, will go.'

" Sant' lurcamiele Arcangiolo stared at his
brother in amazement. ' But your highness is
the Prince of Fire,' he said, * and this is a
matter of extinguishing a fire, not of lighting
one.'

" * Just so,' San Gabriele Arcangiolo assented.
' Everyone knows that water puts out fire, and that
the Prince of Hail can beat a bonfire black till
not a spark remains alive. But let me go, who
am the Prince of Fire, to cool those flames of
earth with the intenser whiteness of the Fire of
God, and so astonish those little hop-o'-my-
thumbs down there with a two-fold miracle, all
ad maiorem Dei gloriam.'

" And the great archangel dived, swifter
than swiftest heron grounds, dived right into
the heart of the fire, at that same instant when
the carnefices hurled aloft the three brave
boys.

" The fire of earth cooled at the presence of
the Prince of Fire; and, when the three brave
boys, invoking the Lord Abele, fell down therein,
being bound, helpless, and ready to die, San

165

About Doing Little, Lavishly

Gabriele Arcangiolo put the Fire of God into
their hearts, and Hfted them, and showed them
how that they need have no fear, for the flames of
earth could have no power to touch them, so long
as, in their hearts, they cherished the Fire of God ;
and, to give them cheer, he said, ' Trium piiero-
rum cantemus hymmim quern cantabant sancti in
camino ignis henedicentcs Domimim! And, erect
among the flames, as in a garden of tiger-lilies
with canopies of yellow jasmine, and taught
by the archangel, Anania, Azaria and Misaele
chaunted ' Benedicite omnia opera Dominj Dom-
ino, down to et laudabilis et gloriosus et superex.
altatus in scecula' resembling young priests who
chaunt honey-voiced hymns in thanksgiving after
sacrifice.

" That is the history of San Gabriele Arc-
angiolo, Prince of Fire. He does little. Any
archangel can put out a fire. It is a simple thing
for those personages. Sant' lurcamiele Arcan-
giolo, Prince of Hail, could have saved those three
brave boys quite easily. But San Gabriele Arc-
angiolo must needs put himself to the inconveni-
ence of doing a little thing lavishly, of doing
what was unnecessarily suitable. And, — mark me
well, Vittorio, — all the same, our Don Friderico
has done what was unnecessarily suitable in the
matter of a little procession, and in the matter of
our presents ; and he has done this little as lav-
ishly as San Gabriele Arcangiolo, appearing in
his proper person, would have done. All of

i66

About Doing Little, Lavishly

which I told thee, before conquering thee in the
the garden."

* • • • •

As for me, I found the ingenious subtilty of
the compliment to be so unnecessarily suitable,
that, having sent the boys to bed, I wrote it down.

167

About Doubles in General: and

XIIIJ

About Doubles in General: and Sanve-

NANZIO and SANTAGAPITO, IN PARTICULAR

AT dawn, we left Manfredonia. (Manfre-
donia is not the walled-city mentioned
in the preceding tale. That was in
another province.) I prefer to do my summer
travelling before the sun is hot. The boys wore
garlands of woodruff and roses, in honour of San
Barnabo. The Normans have left their mark
upon this region. But that which the Greeks of
earlier ages made, is ineradicable. At every
turn it confronts you. The violet fragrance of it
scents the very air. As we meandered through
olive groves, with the sea on our right, Toto
pondered.

Presently he proclaimed, " Yes, sir : it is quite
plain that the Padre Eterno keeps a set of moulds
in which He shapes our figures."

" Make that good," I said.

" Well, sir: you were speaking to that garzon-
cino of the fishermen on the shore, last night.
You have seen him well? Then, sir, was he not
the living image of our little Ilario? Had he not
the same slight shape, the same dead pale skin

1 68

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

with straight brown hair, the same thin red lips,
the same long green eyes of a little cat, the same
sad, sweet regard, the same plaintive minor voice
of flute? Had he not the same thin delicacy of
build, thighs flat on the inside as of one who
rides well, wrists and ankles which I could break
across my knee? Have you not seen how smooth
and swift his movement was? Is he not the very
same as our Ilario in everything, except the
something, of I know not what, that makes him
not Ilario, but the garzoncino of the fishermen?
Yes. Yet he is not the brother of Ilario. Ilario's
brothers are not like him, being ruddy and robust,
as you know. Nor is he the cousin of Ilario ;
nor even of his blood at all : but born and bred
in this province, where we have never been until
four days ago. Yet you will witness that the
Padre Eterno has used for him the same mould
as that which He used for making Ilario. And I
call him a Cat-boy, as I call Ilario a Cat-boy.
Mi-au !

" Also, in these strange places through which
it is your will to go, I have seen other people who
seem to me to be like some other people whom I
have seen in other places ; but where I cannot
say, because I do not know. That is why I assert
that we are all made in moulds. I do not speak
of our souls ; for each one is a special work, and
no two are alike: but without doubt the Padre
Eterno makes our bodies in sets, to save unnec-
essary trouble and expense ; and He scatters us

169

About Doubles in General: and

over all the world, so that, when the ultimate day
of judging comes, it will be an easy job for San
Michele Arcangiolo to sort us, and to rearrange
us.

" Oh, yes. I know all about twins. Beatrice,
1^ requiescat inpace, gave them to me. But this
is not a matter of twins. It is a matter of per-
sons who have never met before, belonging to
several races, living always many many miles
apart; and, yet, as like in their shapes as two
white roses on a bush.

" And there is something else. You have seen
the fabricator of figures in gesso, at work, pour-
ing the stuff like cream into the mould, leaving it
till it becomes hard enough to stand alone, and
drawing out the figure, white and beautiful as the
gods in the studio at Corvicastra, Well, then,
la sua eccellenza will know the first figure to be
the best, because the mould is new and clean.
The figures which come out of that mould after the
first, are not so true ; and they continue to come
out false and falser, because the mould is worn
with use, and clogged. The moulds of the Padre
Eterno are similar. The first shape which He
makes is a masterpiece, altogether the finest of
its species ; as Ilario is, whom you have chosen
for the faultless correctness of his singular sad
delicacy ; or my brother Guido, chionoblepharos.
The second is like the first, for it came out of the
same mould ; though it is not so fine, because the
mould is new no longer ; and that is the fisher-

170

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

boy. And there will be others still less fine, but
in another region which I have not seen : all the
same I know them to be somewhere ; for the
Padre Eterno is not a wasteful hog like Otone,
who threw away the glasses of photography which
you had spoiled, instead of saving them for a
cover to a melon-patch in time of frost.

" And so we are all made in moulds, in sets ;
and there are many histories of the most divert-
ing character, in which are described the senti-
ments, and the adventures, and the deeds of
persons who, by chance, have been thrown into
the company of their Doubles ; that is to say,
of persons whom the Padre Eterno has shaped
in the same mould.

" Now there was the case of the two martyrs.

" I told you, last summer, that there were
many millions of boys in paradise, when I spoke
of Sansebastiano and of Sampancrazio and of
Sanluigi the Jesuit. Well : and now I shall tell
you of two other boys, martyrs both.

" The first one was called Sanvenanzio. He
endured dreadful sufi"erings, down here in the
world; almost as dreadful as the sufferings of
the patron of Vittorio the Greek, of whom I
will speak another time. But Sanvenanzio was
much admired in paradise, for his courage, and
for the obstinate dauntlessness which made him
insist upon offering his body to the pagans,
allowing them to mangle it for days and weeks,
that Domeniddio might have the greater glory.

171

About Doubles in General: and

Also, he made a good impression on the gods
by a certain haughty mien with which he walked,
or played in the gardens, or did his duties,
plainly showing him to be of buona gente, and
well-brought-up. Also, he was clever, smart,
fearless, good-tempered, blithe as a bird, — alto-
gether, a very nice boy, well-thought-of by
everyone; for which I should like him to be
my friend. He was not a Roman of Rome,
worse luck, his family being a respectable one
of Camerino. Nevertheless he had a rich dark
skin of the colour of golden wine, the same as
the healthy Ercole of la sua eccellenza. With
this, he had eyes resembling brown velvet, with
brows of the same, straight and continuous, and
a beautiful small round head covered with little
rings and curls, — oh, but lighter than his skin,
— of the yellow-silver colour of a pale and shin-
ing straw, like that of the Lord Adamo on the
arras at Deira. This looked very noble and
singular when he wore his halo, which was red
as blood, because he was a martyr; and it gave
him such a grand and brilliant aspect, that all
the gods considered him to be simpaticissimo.

"Of course, he never lacked companions; for
he was that kind of boy which everyone finds
to be adorable, and is pleased to see. He spent
most of his play-time with Santafilomena and
Santagiulia, the one a Roman, the other an
Hebrew, because they were martyrs as he was :
and he preferred little girls who have dark hair

172

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

and white skins, which is only right and natural,
seeing that he had light hair and a dark skin.
Always choose, for your female friend, your
opposite in colour, if you are wise, sir. Well,
and after he had amused himself in paradise for
three and twenty years, or thereabouts, suddenly,
something happened.

" Sanvenanzio had been passing a happy after-
noon in the apple-orchard, with his two friends
Santafilomena and Santagiulia. While the sun
was hot, for it was August summer, they sat in
the shade, eating apples and telling holy tales like
this one; and then Sanvenanzio stretched his full
length on a bed of southernwood, and took a
siesta. While he slept the girls made chains of
blue-bells, till the Ave Maria rang. Then, the
three knelt down to say their prayer, for it was
out of Easter-tide ; and Santafilomena and Santa-
giulia wreathed their flowers round the glowing
limbs of Sanvenanzio, and put a garland of blue-
bells on his yellow-silver hair, and bracelets of
blue-bells on his arms, and a necklace of blue-
bells round his throat ; and they laughed and sang
because they were so happy, being young, and
gods in paradise. Presently they took to running
races over the soft greensward beneath the apple-
blossoms; and Santafilomena and Santagiulia
were left behind, because girls always glue their
knees together when they try to run ; but San-
venanzio ran like a boy, — that is to say, striding
with the full length of the leg, — and he went

173

About Doubles in General: and

out of sight like a swallow, and hid behind
a tree which was within a stone's throw of the
Gate, waiting there until the girls came up, all
out of breath, and laughing when they found
him.

" While these things were being done in para-
dise, another boy was undergoing martyrdom
down there in the world ; and he was called Sant-
agapito. As soon as he had finished dying, his
angel brought him to paradise ; and Sampietro
opened the Gate, while the quire struck up the
hymn, Invicte Martyr, Uniaim Patris sccutus
Filiiim: Victis triinnphans hostibus, Victor f mens
ccelestibus. When the new god came through the
archway, all the huge angels bowed profoundly,
and Santafilomena and Santagiulia went to kiss
his hands, and to give him a good-day; while his
angel-guardian brought his halo, red as blood,
from the Duomo, with a diadem of laurel, and a
branch of xanthine palm entwined with lilies
which Madonnina keeps for martyrs who are also
maids.

" Sanvenanzio stood still, stiff, rigid as a statue
carved in Corinthian bronze, staring at Santaga-
pito. He shook himself, breaking the chains of
blue-bells, strewing them on the grass. He
rubbed his eyes, and stared again, and caught his
breath. Then he stepped up to Sampietro, and
plucked Him by the orfrey of His cope, saying
that he did not feel quite well.

" ' Um-m-m-m-m ! Fever?' Sampietro said.

174

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

He drew off His glove with the jewels on the
back, and stroked the skin of Sanvenanzio.

" ' No. Not fever,' La Sua Santita was pleased
to say. ' Tell Us what ails you, caruccio? '

" Sanvenanzio answered that something was
the matter with his eyes, and his head was giddy.
Sampietro stooped, opening the stripling's eye-
lids with thumb and index finger, and looking
into the pure clear depth within. There was no
disorder to be seen, and He began to doubt of
Sanvenanzio, thinking that, perhaps, this might be
some jape on the youngster's part. You never
know where you have a boy, sir, as you yourself
have said more than seven and thirty times.

" ' Look here, Sampietro,' Sanvenanzio said.
* I know you think that I am playing a trick
upon you. But, by the holy plane-tree, Santo
Padre, you are mistaken this time. The fact is,
I can see strange things here, which I take to be
delusions of the daemon; and I do not like
them.'

" Sampietro asked what kind of things : worms,
or rats, or bats, or toads?

Sanvenanzio pointed to the group on the
greensward by the gate. ' Look there,' he said.

" ' Well? What is there to startle you in that? '
Sampietro asked.

'"But, is there something there? '

" ' Bless the boy ! Of course there is ! '

" ' Sampietro, — am I Sanvenanzio, or not? '

" * Certainly you are Sanvenanzio.'

175

About Doubles in General: and

" Sanvenanzlo flew into a violent rage, ' Then,
Sampietro, by the zone of Kuthereia, what is
that? ' he stormed.

" At this noise, the angel-legions dressed by
the right, leaving Santagapito in the foreground.
The boys glared each at other. A pretty situa-
tion ! Sanvenanzio furiously glowered at Sant-
agapito. Santagapito furiously glowered at
Sanvenanzio. They resembled two muscular
young cats, about to spring. Other gods came
crowding round, looking from one lad to the
other, and from the other to the one, in utter
and complete amazement.

" * This is awe-full ! ' Sampietro said. He
took off His tiara, and gave it to an acolyth,
while He wiped the sweat from His brow, using
His gremial, instead of the fanon provided for
such purposes. His Holiness went on to say,
' Here are two boys, as like as two little brown
almonds. Sanvenanzio, We have reason to know,
seeing that We admitted him three and twenty
years ago. And Santagapito is a new god who
has just arrived. Every feature of these two,
from heel to crown, is so beautiful, that they
appear to have no face in particular by which
We might distinguish. And, which is Sanve-
nanzio, or which Santagapito, We are unable
to declare — in fact, this is a case of the Pope
ill-informed; and unless the Pope be speedily
well-informed, you lazy good-for-nothing loafers
will get no judgment ex cathedra to-day. Now

176

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

then ! ' And Sampietro gave way to one of his
tempers.

" Sancassiano came out of the crowd, remark-
ing that he had had some experience of dealing
with boys, having kept school down there in the
world.

" ' Ah, yes,' Sampietro said. ' An excellent
idea. Our good Sancassiano ! Pray give Us the
benefit of your experience. Come and sit on
this stool near Our throne ; and do try to get to
the bottom of this monkey-trick.'

Sancassiano took a seat at the feet of La Sua
Santita ; and their angel-guardians led the pair
of striplings forward, while all the gods, and
many million angels stood round in a semi-circle.
Sanvenanzio and Santagapito hissed one at other
through clenched teeth. Only their angel-
guardians stopped them from gripping throats.

" ' Now, you boys, behave yourselves, and look
at me,' Sancassiano said. And they looked at
him.

" * Let all the other gods turn away their
eyes,' Sancassiano continued. And the other
gods turned away their eyes.

" Then Sancassiano made signs to Venan-
ziello, — who is the angel-guardian of Sanvenan-
zio, and resembles him in appearance, except
that his arms are wings and that he has a
hundred cubits of height, — that he should cover
his lad completely with his feathers. Venanziello
obeyed. Sanvenanzio was lifted high in the arms
12 177

About Doubles in General: and

of his angel-guardian, and shrouded in white
plumes.

" Sancassiano gave leave ; and the other gods
turned round and looked again. On one side,
they saw an angel who towered above their
heads, holding a little something-hidden in his
great wings. On the other side, they saw
another angel who confined a furious stripling
between his feet.

" Then Sancassiano cried, ' O divj e dive di
Dio, what do you call this boy? '

" And they answered, ' Sanvenanzio.'

" ' Hide your eyes again,' Sancassiano said.
And they hid their eyes,

" Then Sancassiano made signs to Venanziello
that he should change places with Agapitello, —
who is the angel-guardian of Santagapito, and
resembles him in appearance, except that his
arms are wings and that he has a hundred cubits
of height, — and that he should put his lad down
between his feet; also that Agapitello should
take up Santagapito in his arms, and bury him
him in his plumage,

" Then Sancassiano cried a second time, ' O
divj e dive di Dio, what do you call this boy? '

" And they answered, ' Sanvenanzio,'

" 'Yah, fools ! ' Sancassiano said,

" Agapitello put Santagapito between his feet,
alongside of Sanvenanzio, who was confined be-
tween the feet of Venanziello ; and the lads me-
naced each the other as before; and the crowd

178

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

looked on this side and on that, resembhng so
many imbeciles.

" ' Dear Sancassiano, this is terrible,' Sam-
pietro said, having viewed the whole perform-
ance.

" ' Leave me alone, if You please, Sampietro,'
Sancassiano said.

" ' But look here,' Sampietro persisted, ' they
both are gods ! That is certain ; otherwise they
would be in another place. One is Sanvenanzio,
who is an old friend of Ours. The other is
Santagapito, all brand-new. But which is which?
That is the question.'

" ' Am I managing this business, or is La
Sua Santita?' Sancassiano demanded.

" ' Oh, you, dear Sancassiano, by all means,'
Sampietro replied.

" ' Then be so kind as to allow me to manage
it in my own way,' Sancassiano said. And he
ordered Venanziello and Agapitello each to
measure his own boy; while he wrote down the
measurements on the back of an old plenary
indulgence which was lying near.

" ' Height? ' Sancassiano said.

" * Sixty-six top-joints-of-thumb,' Venanziello
said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" ' Finger-tip to finger-tip? ' Sancassino said.

" ' Sixty-six top-joints-of-thumb,' Venanziello
said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

179

About Doubles in General: and

" * Chin to top of head? ' Sancasslano said.

" ' Eight and a half top-joints-of-thumb,'
Venanziello said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" * Round chest? ' Sancassiano said.

" ' Thirty-seven top-joints-of-thumb,' Venan-
ziello said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" * Inner length of leg? ' Sancassiano said.

" ' Thirty-four and a half top-joints-of-thumb,'
Venanziello said.

'• * Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" * Round knee? ' Sancassiano said,

" * Eleven and a half top-joints-of-thumb,'
Venanziello said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" ' Round calf? ' Sancassiano said.

" ' Twelve and a half top-joints-of-thumb,'
Venanziello said.

" ' Ditto,' Agapitello said.

" ' This is shocking ! ' Sampietro murmured.

" ' Let us have no more havvky-pawky ! Now,
you boy there, what do you call yourself? '
Sancassiano said, pointing with his style to
Sanvenanzio.

" * Sanvenanzio,' Sanvenanzio answered.

" ' And you?' Sancassiano said to the other.

" ' Santagapito,' Santagapito answered.

"'Age?' Sancassiano said.

" ' Fifteen,' Sanvenanzio answered. Venan-
ziello nodded forward.

iSo

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

" ' Fifteen,' Santagapito answered. Agapitello
nodded forward.

" ' From what place? ' Sancassiano said.

" ' Da Camerino,' Sanvenanzio answered. Ven-
anziello assented.

" ' Da Praeneste,' Santagapito answered.
Agapitello assented.

" ' Where are your clothes ? ' Sancassiano said.

" ' I was stripped naked for my martyrdom,'
Sanvenanzio said.

" * Also I,' Santagapito said.

"'Recite the Acts of your Passion?' Sancas-
siano said.

" ' I shouted at the dirty pagans that I was a
Christian,' Sanvenanzio said.

" ' Also I,' Santagapito said.

" ' Of course you did ! ' Sampietro said. The
boys bowed to La Sua Santita.

" * The first day, they scourged me with wild-
rose-runners ; at night, in the prison, my angel
healed my wounds,' Sanvenanzio said.

" ' Also me ; and they left me in my dun-
geon for four days without food,' Santagapito
said.

" ' They burned my breast with torches,'
Sanvenanzio said.

" ' And mine with embers ; also, they scourged
me again,' Santagapito said.

" ' At night, we healed them,' Venanziello and
Agapitello said.

" * The next day, they hanged me by the feet,

i8i

About Doubles in General : and

head downward, over a smoky fire to choke me,'
Sanvenanzio said.

" ' Also me,' Santagapito said.

" ' Oh, the rascals ! ' Sampietro muttered.

"'We held them in our arms, and fanned the
smoke away,' Venanziello and Agapitello said.

" ' The next day, they poured boiling water on
my belly,' Santagapito said.

" ' At night, I healed his scalds,' Agapitello said.

" * The next day, they smashed my face with
iron bars, and broke my jaws, and all my teeth,'
Sanvenanzio said.

" ' Also mine,' Santagapito said.

" * At night, we mended them,' Venanziello
and Agapitello said.

" 'The next day, they tried to drown me in the
cloaca,' Sanvenanzio said.

" ' I held his head above the filth, and gave
him lavender to smell ; afterward I cleaned him,'
Venanziello said.

" ' The next day, they put me in a cage with
three black lions,' Santagapito said.

" ' Also me,' Sanvenanzio said.

" ' We made the lions behave like kittens,'
Venanziello and Agapitello said.

" * The next day, they tied my ankles to a
horse's tail, and dragged me through thickets
where brambles and thistles grew,' Sanvenanzio
said.

" ' At night I cured his scratches,' Venanziello
said.

182

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

" ' The next day, they dashed me over a preci-
pice,' Sanvenanzio said.

" * I caught him,' Venanziello said.

" * The next day, they drew me, Hke a harrow,
over rocks and stones,' Sanvenanzio said.

" ' At night I healed the bleeding gashes of
his flesh,' Venanziello said.

" ' The next day, they struck off my head with
a sword; here is the scar,' Sanvenanzio said,
pointing to the white line round his throat.

'* ' Also mine,' Santagapito said, showing his scar.

" ' Here is the sword,' Venanziello said.

" * Here is the sword,' Agapitello said.

" ' Bravissimo ! Bravissimo ! ' Sampietro
shouted, waving the keys.

" There was silence.

" Sanvenanzio and Santagapito no longer
glared with defiance. They stretched out their
arms, looking each into the other's eyes with
love and admiration. Their angel-guardians
saw that all bad blood was gone, and loosed
them from restraint. Hand in hand, they faced
Sancassiano.

" Sancassiano sat, and gnawed his finger-nails.
The gods murmured in perplexity.

" * We are no wiser than before, O dear San-
cassiano,' Sampietro said.

" ' Pardon me, Santo Padre,' Sancassiano an-
swered ; ' one thing is evident. Sanvenanzio
admits that the flesh of his back was torn to
ribands, when the pagans dragged him over

1S3

About Doubles in General: and

brambles and sharp flints. This was not done
to Santagapito; but, instead, they poured boil-
ing water on his belly. Here, then, is a differ-
ence ; and, by the different scars upon the bodies
of these boys, shall we be able to decide which
is Sanvenanzio and which Santagapito.'

" ' Ma che ! ' Santagapito interrupted. ' Did
you not hear that my angel-guardian healed my
scalded belly, and made my flesh all sound and
sweet after each day of my torment? How then
can I show those scars? Also, the body, which
I wear in paradise, is new, and formed of the
Fire of God. I left my earthly dust to lie be-
neath my altars in the world, where Christian
men shall plead my merits, asking my inter-
cession to obtain gifts for their bodies and their
souls. You, Yourself, Sampietro, cured the sick,
down there, even by the passing of Your shadow.
Surely, I can follow Your example, giving greater
glory to Domeniddio, by manifesting the power
which La Sua Maesta has deigned to grant to
me. Therefore, I cannot show You scars, save
this one round my throat; and, that I wear,
because it cut my path to paradise. But San-
venanzio is also scarred, as I am, round the
throat : and, if You will not take my word, nor
his, it seems that You will have to seek some other
way of finding which of us two is rightly called
Santagapito and which Sanvenanzio.

" ' The stripling is apt, and speaks reasonably,
O dear Sancassiano,' the Santo Padre said.

184

Sanvenanzio and Santagapito

" But Sancassiano appeared more worried than
ever. He was completely at a loss : but, being
a schoolmaster, he could not bear the notion of
defeat before a pair of boys. His halo was
cocked awry, and he nervously nibbled his style-
tip, while the gods, standing round, shifted their
feet, and discussed the situation, in that babbling
undertone which crowds use when waiting for the
voice of authority to decide.

" Then there came a little chirrup from the
front row, saying, ' If you please, santo signor
professore ! ' It was Santafilomena mewing like
a little cat.

" 'Well, little girl?' Sancassiano said.

** * If you please, santo signor professore, I
know,' Santafilomena answered.

"'And what do you know, my child?' San-
cassiano asked.

" ' I know which is Sanvenanzio,' Santafilo-
mena said.

" ' Then tell me which is Sanvenanzio,' San-
cassiano ordered,

"She came out of the throng; and, going up
to Sanvenanzio, she took him by the hand ; and
she said, ' If you please, santo signor professore,
this is Sanvenanzio.'

" ' Tell me how you know that, my little deary,'
Sancassiano said.

" ' If you please, santo signor professore, and
Santo Padre, and all you divj e dive di Dio,' San-
tafilomena answered, as she made a pretty cour-

185

About Doubles in General

tesy to the gods, ' Santagiulia and I spent the
afternoon with Sanvenanzio in the apple-or-
chard ; and, while the lazy creature took a nap,
we made chains and wreaths of blue-bells ; and,
when he woke, we hung them on him. There
are the blue-bells on the floor: he broke them
with his naughty temper, when he saw Santaga-
pito. He is my great friend, you know ; and
we have played together since the day on which
he came to paradise. And I know well the yel-
low-silver colour of his hair, for I have often
rumpled it when playing with him. That other
lad has hair as red as virgin gold, quite different
to the colour of my friend. Stoop down, boy,*
she said to Sanvenanzio.

" He lowered his head.

" Santafilomena plunged her fingers in his ruf-
fling curls, and drew out the petals of a broken
blue-bell, which she exhibited with triumph before
the eyes of all.

" And the gods, having said their Deo Gratias,
shouted with joy, ' Brava ! Bravissima ! Santa-
filomena ! Sharp girl, that ! Evviva ! Evviva ! ' "

i86

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S. J.

About the Aforesaid, and Padre Dotto
Vagheggino, S. J.

" 'W' NEED not tell la sua eccellenza, that
I Santagapito and Sanvenanzio were firm
jL. friends from that hour. They resembled
Sampancrazio and Sansebastiano, who arrived a
few years later, being leal, loving, and just what
brothers ought to be — but never are. Santa-
filomena, chionochrotine with dark hair, re-
mained the friend of Sanvenanzio, with his pale
hair and his tawny skin ; and Santagiulia, chio-
nochrotine with dark hair, became the friend of
Santagapito with his tawny skin and his hot hair
like a flame : all of which is precisely right and
proper, as you would expect it to be in paradise,
and, oh, so superior to this blind world, where we
match our colours. And I could talk all day,
and all night as well, speaking of the adventures
and the jokes, and the sports of these four gods;
but, now, I will recite the history of a stratagem
by which they made a little Jesuit look ridic-
ulous, curing him of the sins of avarice and
vanity.

" He was parrocchiano of Santo Pozzo in the
province of Selce, and he called himself Padre

187

About the Aforesaid, and

Dotto Vagheggino. His superiors had put him
there, because he was as clever at earning money
as any seven-and-thirty Hebrew grocers ; and
money, by which power can be bought, is more
dear to a Jesuit than anything else in the world.

" Santo Pozzo was a squalid enough village in
a desolate province. AH the men were sots;
and all the women, lewd. But, in the church,
there was a shrine of Santo Pozzo, most antick,
and very precious and magnifical, where the
Padre Eterno was often pleased to heal the sick,
and to grant other admirable graces.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino was not the kind of
man to make himself miserable on account of
sots and harlots. He had no time to attend to
those; for he wished to bring multitudes and
multitudes from all the world, to worship at the
shrine of Santo Pozzo ; knowing that pious per-
sons, who came on a pilgrimage to ask favours
from a god, do not think about their money, but
give it freely to the priest who guards the shrine,
hoping that a sacrifice will secure for them the
grace which they desire to gain. And, for a few
years, foreigners filled the squalid village ; and
the coffers of Padre Dotto Vagheggino brimmed,
so that he became rich enough to pay the ex-
penses of the parish ; and also, every month, he
sent a good bagful of gold to the Black Pope
at Fiesole. It was good business that he did.
But, suddenly, the pilgrimages ceased. People in
other provinces left off thinking about Santo

1 88

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S.J.

Pozzo; and Padre Dotto Vagheggino earned
less money than he hked. So he resolved to
have made a fine new statue of Santo Pozzo of
flesh-coloured marble, very rare and precious,
meaning that it should attract foreigners with fat
purses, into which last he thought he might con-
trive to slide a sticky finger. And the statue was
carved in Rome, and blessed by Papa Pecci Him-
self: truly, it was a work of art, altogether splen-
did. When Padre Dotto Vagheggino measured
it, he found it to be so large that by no means
could it be brought into his little church.
Wherefore he took the idea of building a basi-
lica on a hill above the village, — an immense
basilica, costing bags and bags of gold, — in
which a new shrine of Santo Pozzo could be
made, where the new statue could be placed in
pomp and dignity.

" But the torrent of pilgrims had dwindled
down into a little rill. And all were poor. Padre
Dotto Vagheggino's pocket was empty. No one
seemed anxious to fill it. What was to be done?
He sat down to make a meditation. In the first
place, he considered how that Love is the most
powerful thing in all the world. Not the Love
which is Divine — all very beautiful and well
enough in its way, but unsuitable for men of the
world, of course; but the Love which is Desire
— ah, yes, take care of number one, and charity
begins at home. In the second place, he con-
sidered that, in this world, women are very power-

189

About the Aforesaid, and

ful ; and that in number they are more than men.
Also, that their hearts are like dried tinder.
And then he smacked his knee, and considered,
in the third place, that if he could give women
something to love, he would win them to his side,
and they would thank him for the pleasure they
received, and would give him bags of gold in re-
turn. Conclusion — what could he give to women
to love? And there he found a difficulty. And
for many months he pondered over the conclusion
of his meditation.

" He travelled through the country, preaching
everywhere of Santo Pozzo ; but no one took any
notice of his words ; and no one gave him alms
for the building of his vast basilica. People
seemed content to remain in their own provinces,
and to worship the gods whose shrines were at
their very doors.

" Now, on his travels, this scheming Jesuit
noticed that, in every church where there was a
picture of Sansebastiano, women, old and young,
princesses and contadine, ancient hags and
matrons, marriageable women and delicious little
girls, flocked together like droves of geese,
cackling their prayers, because the beautiful
figure of Sansebastiano in his picture inflamed
their hearts, sometimes to madness, sometimes to
death. But, more particularly, Padre Dotto
Vagheggino noticed that they gave their jewels,
or their corals, or their gold and silver pins and
necklaces and bracelets to buy candles for his

190

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S. J.

shrine, thinking of him all day, dreaming of him
all night, hoping to recommend themselves to that
fair youthful god, and to have the strong embrace
of his protection, and their hearts warmed by
spiritual favours.

" Then Padre Dotto Vagheggino thought that he
could see the way to conclude his meditation ; and
he bought a picture of Sansebastiano for his own
church.

"The girls and women of Santo Pozzo rushed
to pray before this picture, faUing in love with
Sansebastiano according to the custom, and going
home to dream. But the females of Santo Pozzo
were few in number, also poor; and no more
money came to Padre Dotto Vagheggino than
sufficed to buy the pasta for his table, and to
keep him in the favour of his superiors. Women
of other provinces did not worry the Sansebastiano
of Santo Pozzo with their prayers, for they had
his picture in their own parishes. The men
stayed with their women, as they always will ; and
Padre Dotto Vagheggino saw that the time had
not yet come when he might fold his hands and
rest. He was quite certain that he had found the
conclusion of his meditation; and he considered,
day and night, in order to discover the step which
led to it, till he became thin and poorly, and the
hair of his head dropped off, so that it looked like
a bladder of lard.

• • • •

" All the time, Santagapito and Sanvenanzio had

191

About the Aforesaid, and

been looking over the ramparts of heaven, to
watch this Jesuit; just as I, sir, would sit and
watch a lizard who wriggles and writhes to climb
out of a slippery-sided bottle into which it may
have cast itself. It made them very sick to see
a holy priest busily neglecting the souls in his
parish, — souls for which he would have to render
an account, whenever the Padre Eterno should
deign to call upon him. And Santagapito and
Sanvenanzio went and kneeled down in the
Duomo, asking of La Sua Maesta leave to use
their wits for teaching Padre Dotto Vagheggino a
lesson, by making him a laughing stock and a
thing of ridicule, all for the health of his soul.

" The Padre Eterno graciously asked what
good that would do ; to Whom Santagapito and
Sanvenanzio answered that this Jesuit, though
cursed with an itching palm and a gross self-
conceit, had, also, some sense of humour, as
well as a good heart to acknowledge himself
wrong, when once he grasped the fact. So they
desired to bring him into ridicule, and to let
him see that even the wicked world despises
and mocks a holy priest who grabs at gold like
an Hebrew grocer. Then, they said, he would
have an opportunity of laughing at his own
folly, and of amending his silly sinful habits.
And the Padre Eterno was pleased to say,
'ijujuji We grant the request.'

" That night, sir, Sanvenanzio left Santagapito
in the garden, playing with Sampontico and

192

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S.J.

Santrufone with Samrespicio, boys like himself;
and he came down to Santo Pozzo in the pro-
vince of Selce.

*' In the priests' house, there was a little room
with a little window which opened in the church,
high in the side wall of the apsis. A person in
this room, who looked down through that little
window, would see the high altar below him on
the right hand; and, opposite, the other side
wall of the apsis blank as death. Here, the
Jesuits came to say their litanies, or ofBce, or
private prayers, and Padre Dotto Vagheggino
was kneeling at the httle window, with his beads
unsaid, worrying his dolour, and staring at the
blank wall across the apsis. It was past bed-
time, and the church was dark.

" Sanvenanzio came down quietly, having made
himself invisible; and he stood, floating in the
air, by the blank wall in front of Padre Dotto
Vagheggino : and, while that Jesuit stared into
the darkness of the church, Sanvenanzio became
radiant and resplendent as the stars before his
eyes.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino had shouted frothy
fervorini about miracles for many years ; but
never, yet, had he beheld a vision of the gods
in his proper person. He said to himself that
if this apparition were reality, and if other wit-
nesses could see it, then his fortune would be
made. He pinched his cheek. Oh, he was wide
awake undoubtedly ! His eyes did no deceiving.
13 193

About the Aforesaid, and

His supper had been a light one. Yes. This
was undeniably one of the gods from paradise.
He looked more earnestly through his little
window. Sanvenanzio did not move ; but his
eyes sparkled white in his skin of wine-colour.
Padre Dotto Vagheggino saw a tall straight
healthy boy of fifteen years, having shining hair,
and strong stark body and limbs, dark as Do-
meniddio made him. His left hand rested on
the pommel of a sword. His right was proudly
raised to wave a branch of palm entwined with
lilies. He wore a laurel diadem; and, round
his halo, red as blood, the Jesuit could read
these golden words:

fa^

®v vs venanTivs aTWP c he? sT"ncixTa

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino's eyes were bathed
in the beauty of this vision. In his throbbing
brain he formed a plan. Let any one who would,
possess a Sansebastiano. Here was a most un-
common and most splendid god, to whose pre-
sentment, in a picture, all the female world would
bring their hearts and purses. Yes. A picture
of Sanvenanzio. Yes. Where could such a thing
be found? And was he a proper saint? Well,

not improper — but The Jesuit whipped

out his neglected breviary, and ran his finger
down the kalendarium — * um — um — January
— February — March — April — May — yes —
the eighteenth day of May,' he ran over to the

194

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S. J.

Mattins of the eighteenth day of May. ' Um —
Um — Yes, surely ! — Three Proper Lessons, ajid
three Proper Hymns ! Per Venere ! Venanzio
da Camerino, a stripling of fifteen years, having
been accused, before Antiocho, who was governor
of Cameritio under the Emperor Decio, of profes-
sing the Christian Faith, of his own will sur-
rendered himself at the garrison-gate of the city : and
the rest. A very great saint indeed ! One of the
early martyrs of whom we hear nothing nowadays !
Quite respectable ! A treasure ! A veritable
antick ! Gloria Patri thrice, in honour of
Sanvenanzio ! Gloriapatrietfilioetspirituisanctosic-
uteratinprincipioetnuncetsemperetinscecHlas(Bculorii-
mamengloriapatrietfilioetspiritnisanctosicuteratinp-
rinc ip ioetn ii ncetsemperetitis cbc u lascsc n lo rn m a m en-
gloriapatrietfilioetspirituisanctosiciiteratinprincipio-
etnnncetsemperetinsceculas(2culoriimamen! O blessed
Sanvenanzio, pray for me; — pray for me; and
for my basilica ! '

" And, on his knees, he prayed, and feasted
his eyes, and prayed, and prayed, till Sanven-
anzio faded with the dawn, going back to
paradise.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino needed not to use
his bed. He could not rest till he had set his
new scheme afoot. He roused the sagrestano,
and made him prepare vestments and an altar.
When he had said his mass, he breakfasted —
an uovo in bianco, two olives, a flask of red
wine; and, before the sun had warmed the

195

About the Aforesaid, and

world, he ran with the utmost speed of his legs
to a painter in the village whom he had marked
to have skill, superb ambition, and exalted faith.
To him, Padre Dotto Vagheggino said that he
required a picture surpassing any work of art, of
any age or country ; and he described the form,
the pose, the singular bright beauty of the god
which he had seen. He took the painter, with
his paints and brushes, to an empty room near
by the church, giving him a canvas, white and
large, on which to set the masterpiece ; and,
there, he shut him up in secret. Many hours
did Padre Dotto Vagheggino spend, speaking of
his vision : and, at last, he managed to inflame the
painter's mind so, that he conceived a true and
splendid composition, showing the holy martyr
as he is in paradise. And, when the Jesuit was
gone away, the painter made innumerable draw-
ings according to the description given, until his
soul was satisfied. And the last he showed to
Padre Dotto Vagheggino, who fell upon his neck
and kissed him, saying, ' Hail ! Maestro ! You
are a true artist ; and you have set down that
which was in my mind ! *

" Having had his brushes, and his canvas,
and his tinctures, blessed with holy water, the
maestro took a charcoal stick; and right across
the unsullied canvas he wrote this incantation
Divo Venanzio aiutatemi. Over this he set his
drawing; and, having laid a palette, he began to
paint.

196

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S. J.

" Every night, when Padre Dotto Vagheggino
told his beads, looking through the httle win-
dow in the church, Sanvenanzio was envoyed
from paradise by his angel-guardian, and showed
himself by the blank wall, as before. But he
only stayed a minute, or two minutes, now; lest
Padre Dotto Vagheggino should become familiar,
and presume to take a liberty ; for he knew the
man.

*' Every day the Jesuit desired to see the
painter at his work; but this maestro begged
that he would wait till the picture should be in
a fit condition to be seen. Padre Dotto Vagheg-
gino fumed with impatience ; but he waited :
and, one day the maestro opened the door of his
secret studio. There, in shadow, the picture was
displayed. It presented Sanvenanzio, of the size
of life, all ardent, in a blue profundity.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino hopped about the
room, making a loop with his index-finger and
his thumb, peering through the same, consider-
ing the masterpiece from every point of view.
Then, he cried for joy, saying, * Yes, dear
maestro; it is fine indeed ! It gives me supreme
consolation! At last, at last! You have made
a great success ! How pleased the simple female
folk will be ! Hail 1 Maestro ! Now let us set
it over there, and view it in another light.'

" So they moved the picture into full sun-
light ; and the Jesuit continued, ' Bravo, bravo !
Here is a splendid work ! How bold are the

197

About the Aforesaid, and

lines ! How rich are the colours ! Exactly as I
saw him ! Immense ! Immense ! But do you
know, dear maestro, I think his hair was just a
little lighter. Perhaps you will be kind enough to
make that alteration ! ' And then he went away
about his business ; and, all day long, the maes-
tro laboured to make the hair look lighter.

" At night, Sanvenanzio showed himself as
usual ; and, in the morning. Padre Dotto Vagheg-
gino thought that the breast should be made a
little broader. This was done. The next day,
he found the flanks to be too narrow. The maes-
tro added width to the flanks, against his will.
The next day the Jesuit required that the legs
should be made fatter. This was done. The
next day he wished to have them shortened.
This was done. Having caught a brief glimpse
of Sanvenanzio at night, in the morning he said
that the spaces between the first and second toes
were too large. The maestro obeyed his orders
meekly, though he knew that every alteration
wrecked the noble contours, dulled tinctures,
flattened features, spoiled the work ; and, when
he was alone, he cursed the impudence and the
svariamento of the Jesuit, his patron, out aloud.

" Then, the night came, when Sanvenanzio
remained in paradise ; and Santagapito descended
to Santo Pozzo in the province of Selce, to stand
where his brother had stood by the blank wall of
the church, before the eyes of Padre Dotto Vagheg-
gino looking through the little window; but,

198

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S.J.

though he stayed a quarter of an hour, he kept
his halo dim; and the Jesuit did not notice the
golden letters,

©wsagarTvsmarTyddi'nvigTvs

In the morning, when Padre Dotto Vagheggino
went to see the picture in the secret studio, he
said, * Maestro mio, do you know, I am not quite
satisfied with that hair : it is far too pale ! What
I want you to get, is a purrothrixine colour like a
phlox! Do you understand?' So the painter
laid a palette with fresh tints, and painted the
hair anew till it resembled flames.

" For three nights, Santagapito showed him-
self; and then he came no more. But, every
morning of a month, Padre Dotto Vagheggino
demanded alteration in the picture, trusting to
his memory when he saw no visions. The figure
was all too robust and plethorick, bursting with
the two reds, — beef and wine, — he said. It
resembled a great fat, vulgar, full-blooded plough-
boy. Look at that hupogastrion ! Look at those
broad hips! Look at those clumsy haunches —
at those sturdy, stumpy legs — at those cramped
toes like a clenched fist. Where could grace or
spirituality be found in the grossness of such a
garzonaccio? All this must be changed. He
would not listen to the maestro. He knew pre-
cisely what he wanted : he intended to have it ;
if not from this, then, from another painter who

199

About the Aforesaid, and

would obey his betters ! So, he excited himself,
seizing brushes and paint of the blackest black,
daring to work on the canvas of the maestro, de-
filing it with thick lines, dashes, scribbled smears,
and splotches !

" Oh, the vanity of that Jesuit ! All that there
was to be known, he knew. The rest was nothing.
He would teach everybody, everything. Would
la sua eccellenza be pleased to have a goat caper-
ing in his studio and teaching him his art? You
would kill me, who know something, if I dared.

" Then you will find this painter to be sim-
paticissimo, when he cried on kind Madonna,
asking mercy, demanding what he had done to
deserve the anguish of seeing his good paints
wasted, and his good work spoiled. But Ma-
donna continued to be silent. She sat up there,
and smiled, knowing that these torments would
purify the soul of that maestro ; and Sanvenan-
zio with Santagapito had promised her that he
should not have to suffer more than enough;
also, that when the Jesuit had learned his lesson,
then they would give rewards to the maestro whom
he crucified with his selfish and conceited tyranny.
And, by night, to that maestro, they brought a
little golden key having a ball of rock-crystal at
its handle; that into it he might plunge his
tired eyes, and refresh them with glimpses of the
gods. Secretly, they placed this gold and crystal
key upon his easel ; and when the maestro found
it, and looked upon it, in the morning, he saw

200

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S.J.

sights such as he had never seen before, except
in dreams; and he knew that some kind god
regarded him with favour, giving him a key
which unlocked paradise, as a refuge for his pain.
So he said to himself that he would obey that
Jesuit usque ad nauseam; and, if his patron de-
sired to have a frightful picture, a frightful picture
he should have. It mattered nothing to the painter.

" For many days he toiled, with Padre Dotto
Vagheggino always at his ankle, suggesting this
line, ordering that shadow, insisting upon the
other colour; until, in time, the picture showed a
scraggy gristly sneak, so long and skinny, so
lanky, and so knotty-jointed, and so muddy-
coloured, that the painter sometimes wished for
death to ease him from the sickness of his mind's
eyes. But then, he used the gold and crystal
key.

" All the same, Padre Dotto Vagheggino swore
that he saw a masterpiece, and he sent letters to
the neighbouring parishes to make known that,
on a certain day, a marvellous and most miracu-
lous picture would be exposed for the veneration
of the faithful, at Santo Pozzo in the province of
Selce. Also, he promised to deal very gene-
rously with the painter, and to make his fame
illustrious through all the world. But that
maestro was a timid misanthrope. Also he
loathed the work which he had been forced to do
against his knowledge and against his will.
Wherefore, he gave a writing to Padre Dotto

20I

About the Aforesaid, and

Vagheggino, asking as a favour, that his name
should not be named, and begging for obhvion as
his sole reward. But the Jesuit romped on his
own sweet way, preaching in many places, near and
far, praising the painter and the work, inciting
multitudes to come to Santo Pozzo, on a pilgrim-
age, at the festa when the picture should be
shown.

" The day arrived, Padre Dotto Vagheggino
placed the picture in a new shrine, all magenta
velvet with festoons of paper roses, green, and
blue, and violet, and orange, most Jesuitical, with
paper lamps and candles burning on all sides.
Women flew in flocks to Santo Pozzo, with their
men following at their heels. They filled the
church till you could not see the floor for their
head-cloths and their hair. The men crowded
in the chapels, and packed themselves round
pillars. Padre Dotto Vagheggino made them sing
some hymns which he himself had made : and
then he drew aside the curtains which veiled the
wondrous picture.

" When the men had looked, they turned and
ran away to the nearest spaccio di vino, saying
nothing. There was nothing to be said by men,
except blasphemy. And blasphemy in a church
is sacrilege as well.

" When the women looked, they shivered.

" * E, the nasty thing ! ' one said.

" ' It 's a nigger with a single leg ! ' another
said.

202

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S. J.

" ' The grey angel with his sickle come to fetch
me ! ' an old hag screamed, and she was carried
away in a fit.

" ' What is it?' a little girl whimpered.

"'Oumf! It makes me heave! I shall give
Cecco a monster if I look at it ! ' a fat mother said.

" They shivered again, and stampeded out of the
church. Women, who had come from distant
places, went to take refreshments at the osteria.
The women of Santo Pozzo slapped their babies,
and, sitting in the shade, they gabbled of neck-
laces and hair-pins.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino was left alone,
spying through his peep-hole into an empty
church.

" His picture was a horror, and his scheme had
failed.

• • • * •

" Santagapito and Sanvenanzio were watching
him from paradise, and they let him have a good
hour of miserable disappointment. Then San-
venanzio said, ' 'Tino, let us go and teach this
Jesuit his lesson.' They made themselves invisi-
ble and, having mounted their angel-guardians,
they descended silently into the empty church,
where they floated in the air above the hideous
picture ; and there they flamed out, radiant and
resplendent as the stars, making the hundred
tapers flicker and burn blue.

" And Padre Dotto Vagheggino, kneeling at his
little window, saw a vision of such immortal splen-

203

A.bout the Aforesaid, and

dour that wish and appetite in it were hushed to
rest; a vision of two tall straight healthy boys of
fifteen years, having strong stark bodies and limbs
of dark wine-colour as Domeniddio made them.
Each left hand rested on the pommel of a sword.
Each right was proudly raised to wave a branch of
palm entwined with lilies. The head of one was
covered with little curls, oh ! but lighter than his
skin, and of the yellow-silver colour of a pale and
shining straw. The head of the other was cov-
ered with little curls, also lighter than his skin,
and tinted like the red of virgin gold. The two
wore diadems of laurel, and, round the halo of
the first, as red as blood, that Jesuit saw the
golden words,

3DVV5VHPiANTiVSATllTACH9ST"NCI^TA

and round the halo of the second, red as blood,
the golden words,

©vvsagarTvsmarTyddi'nvicTvs

" From the darkness of the stern, young faces,
holy eyes shot white-hot silver scorn at Padre
Dotto Vagheggino, holding him transfixed.

" Then Sanvenanzio slowly stretched out his
splendid arm, and pointed at the Jesuit's stony
heart with the palm branch twined with lilies.

" Santagapito also, and he said, * Vain, sinful
priest, attend ! What of the souls for which you
must account?'

204

Padre Dotto Vagheggino, S.J.

" Sanvenanzio answered him, as though they
chaunted anthems, ' All the men are sots, and all
the women lewd ! '

" Santagapito said, ' Eaten up by avarice and
self-conceit, you crave for admiration, for power,
and for gold.'

" Sanvenanzio responded, ' You have left your
Master's flock a prey for the foul fiend, so that
you might be free to fish for gold, for power, for
admiration ! '

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino would stutter some
excuse.

" Santagapito said, ' Silence, base priest, base
juggler ! You, higher than angels, yet must listen
humbly to the voices of the gods. Think of your
miserable estate. You laughing-stock! You
thing for ridicule ! '

" Sanvenanzio responded, * You knew me not
at my first apparition. You had to seek my his-
tory in your book of offices ! '

" Santagapito said, ' As for me, you never
even heard of me, but took me for my brother
Sanvenanzio ! '

" Sanvenanzio responded, ' Yet, though you do
not know your own, you dare to teach another
man his trade ! '

" Santagapito said, * Busybody and meddler
that you are, parcel of conceit and money-
grabber, learn to remove the rocks that blind
your own eyes before you look for specks in the
eyes of other men ! '

205

Padre Dotto Vaheggino, S.J.

" Sanvenanzio responded, ' Learn also, that
neglect of your priestly duties will earn for you
shame and contumely in the world, and eternal
damnation in the world to come. Repent of
your past. Seek the kingdom of Domeniddio
and His Greater Glory, first ; and all things that
your heart desires will be given to you, according
to the Evangel.'

"Then the heavenly voices ceased, and the
two young gods faded from the world, going
back with their angels into paradise.

" Padre Dotto Vagheggino came down from
his little window, and he lay prostrate before II
Santissimo in the tabernacle for many hours,
saying in a broken whisper, very humbly, Kurie
eleeson, CJiriste eleeson, Kurie eleeson, and the
Seven Penitential Psalms, with Litanies.

• • • • ■

" And he learned the lesson taught by those
severe and loving gods so well, that Santo Pozzo
has its great basilica on the hill, wherein the
statue of flesh-coloured marble is worshipped
every day by a thousand grateful tongues ; for
Padre Dotto Vagheggino made of Santo Pozzo a
holy place, where no man is a sot, no woman
lewd."

206

The Key and Purgatory

xvj

About These Tales, the Key and
Purgatory

LYING on his back, on the wooded slopes
of Monte Saraceno, Toto lavished the
long rose-brown sinuosities of youth:
the right leg here, stretched out in a straight line
with his body; the left, there, flexed at the
knee, leaning away in strenuous abandonment.
His arms framed the density of his hair ; his head
and throat fell back and upward to the sky.

In a low-slung hammock, I was gazing,
through the dark green foliage of a cedar, into
the fathomless profundity of blue. The mid-
summer air was soft, here in the cool shade, and
breathed a scent of spikenard.

" Well, sir, Frat' Innocente-of the-Nine-Quires
has told me many tales. I was a little child then,
like Guido. That friar was my friend ; and he
wished me well. Therefore, he taught me to
watch the world with diligent eyes, but especially
the people who are on it. That is why I am
able to say that such a thing is so, because —
or that such a thing will be so, because — He
said that I should learn wisdom by observing
people without their skins. Also, he said that,

207

About These Tales,

at times, I must go away in loneliness, and think,
and listen to the wind, or to the sea, or to the
voices of the trees and of the flowers, or to the
whispers of the earth. This I have done, and
I do : therefore I know many things which
no man has told to me. Frat' Innocente-of-
the-Nine-Quires had visions of the gods, also
conversations with the same, face to face.
Everybody knows it to be so ; for truly, sir, he
is a holy man : and he told me of these, secretly.
If he had not told me, there would have been
few histories for la sua eccellenza, and those not
of the most fine. But he did tell me; and I
have learned his veritable words : some, I do not
understand fully ; but they are beautiful, and
they are his. People say he is improvisatore,
and most illustrious. Improvisatore, indeed !
They have not seen the personages of whom he
speaks; and they do not understand that he
speaks only of personages whom, having seen,
he knows. You have called me improvisa-
tore, also, sir: and you are wrong. All that I
tell you is not improvisation. It is simply the
histories which I have from Frat' Innocente-of-
the-Nine-Quires, given in his proper words; or,
in my own words, descriptions of what I know,
having seen, having heard. There is nothing
more. I am not Domeniddio, Who can create
things from nothing. I must have grapes and
clean feet, before I can make wine. Without
them I make no wine. The things of which I

208

the Key and Purgatory

speak are there ; and, when I look, I see them :
and, — being your own improvisatore, O dear
Don Friderico, — I tell you what I know, after
seeing.

"Dreams? O, yes, — but, dreams. And that is
Our Lady of Dreams. You have seen her, in
her picture in the chapel at Deira. She sends
a dream-angel to put wisdom into me, and to
show me things by night. Yes, often. But not
when I am wicked. No. Therefore I worship
her, Ave Maria, gratia plena, Doniinus tec7im,
benedicta tu in miUieribiis, et Benedictiis Fructus
ventris tid Jhesiis. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora
pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in Jiora mortis
nostrcB: amen.

"Where to find? In various places, sir.
Per esempio, when you do not want me — perhaps
you will be painting that deaureate Desiderio for
Divin Amore, — perhaps you will be sleeping, —
perhaps you will be at home reading to la signora
duchessa — oh, sir, — pardon, — oh, what have
I said, — oh, dear Don Friderico, pardon — ^
requiescat in pace

• • • • *

" Well, sir, when you do not want me, then I
slip into whatever water may be near ; — it must
be deep, sir, and still ; a sea, sir, or the lake; and
I dive headlong down deep, making neither noise
nor splash, opening my eyes wide, — but wide.
Having gone to the depth of my spring, I stretch ;
I become all stiff; and, very slowly, I float up to
14 209

About These Tales,

take breath. But, while I am down there, my
eyes pierce the shadows of the depths, and I see ;
there are voices, and I hear them sing. I drink
secrets with my eyes and ears. My body does
not know, does not feel : it is a log, straight and
stiff, feet and hands stretched far and wide. Then
I breathe strongly in the sun, hanging still in the
water. I spring over, and down, many times,
until I tire of diving. By day, sir, it is a cool
green world under the water ; by night a black-
blue world with silver in it. Afterward, I gain
the bank, and I spread myself in the sun like one
crucified, until my face is dry; and I stare into
the sky, or the sun, or the moon, or a star which
I shall choose. It is a yellow world then, sir, or
a red, or pearl-coloured, or a blue. And, if the
wind sings, I lend my ears. Then I nail myself
face downward, stretching hands and feet far and
wide; and I breathe the breath of the earth.
All the time, I keep my eyelids open to the full,
and fixed, and stedfast; till I see new things, as
well as things that I have seen before. And so I
learn. But this is only the beginning : for the
things are always hazy, and the voices faint.
Still, I have caught wisdom with my eyes and
ears ; and, after, I make it clear, select that which
is worth keeping, and store it in my mind.
When I have put on my cap, and my sandals,
and my thulakoi, and my shirt, then I lie down
under some tree, to think.

" Verses? Oh, yes; it is all music that I hear.

2IO

the Key and Purgatory

They sing, these personages of the water — of the
wind.

" Like plain-song? No, but something Hke.

"Then Hke what? Ah, sir, I do not know
what you want me to say. — Well, then, like
angels, very grave and solemn ; or like sad druads
or naiads.

" Nonsense?

" Listen, sir ! You will take a book, and read,
as fast as you can turn the pages, I must spell
each letter slowly, till I hear it, before I know it.
You dip cut feathers in the ink, and your hand
writes of itself, oh, but pages in an hour ! And
tiny, — tiny! I can write Teodoro and Toto; and
what more, when the feather sticks, and ink
comes down like puddles on the paper. You
paint the gods on planks and canvas, as they are
in paradise. You pinch the ball of a box: you
pour venom from blue bottles over glass in the
dark ; and you make little me come there, leaping,
or wrestling with that beast Otone, or lying at my
ease taking my siesta, just as I live. I cannot do
the deeds of la sua eccellenza: but I do not
call the said deeds nonsense because I cannot do
them. There they are. I know they are, be-
cause I have eyes which see them. Why should
I call them nonsense, then? Also, I have some
wisdom of my own. I tell you that I won it
from Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires, or from
angels, or from water, or from wind, or trees, or
sea, or sky. You know it, because I tell it to

211

About These Tales,

you, just as these personages have put it in my
mind. Oh, yes, people call it nonsense; but
they are people, — quite respectable; but they
do not know things. And la sua eccellenza is of
another species.

" Yes, well ; the key of gold and crystal, — that
is what I said about the painter. The gods
amused him with a key of gold and crystal.
And — ? Well, I am telling you about it now.

" After I have caught the seeds of wisdom
with my eyes and ears, I must fix my eyes wide
open, and lie still, and think. Then, wisdom
blossoms; and I see and hear, clearly and
distinctly, those things which, at first, were hazy,
faint, or shapeless. But, I must be glaring at a
clear distinct thing, all the time. Only that way,
I can plainly see or hear: and, what I plainly
see or hear, that I say. I called it a key, but the
gold part is not important. It was beautiful,
therefore I said it. But it was the bright clear
crystal which had significance : for, when the
painter looked stedfastly into its shining depths,
he could see the gods as they live ; and have
much joy; just as I have joy when I look into
that large crystal ball which stands upon your
writing table at home. So, the thing became a
key by which the painter, tormented by that
Jesuit, might unlock the gate of another world,
and peep in there at his will ; and, peeping, for-
get his pain.

"No, I cannot alway use that crystal ball,

212

the Key and Purgatory

because I dare not move it from your writing
table. But I can see what I want to see in
other things ; not quite so well as in the crystal
ball, but well enough : and these I use when I
am in strange places, such as this. These things
must have depth and brightness. Either will do
for me ; but depth is better. Eyes are very
good ; and the flavian eyes of Desiderio suit me
better than all other eyes, better even than the
pure eyes of that dove, my brother Guido. That
is why I make the creature ride astride my knees,
when I recite histories in these forests. I wrap
him in my arms, and hold him still, and I look
into his eyes. What I see there, is told by my
lips. O, eyes of a glorified cat ! O lovely eyes !
Eyes clear as the golden wine of Nido di Corvo !

" Beatrice ? Well. — Formerly. — Not now. —
Sir, my throat aches when I think. — Excuse
me. — ijj Requiescat in pace.

" Then there is water. If I look at a dew-drop,
or a rain-drop on a flower, or into still water,
or into ink in my palm, then I can see those
things. Or a point of brightness will make my
wisdom blossom ; a light on metal, or on a
pebble, or on glass, — I have seen things on
the spectacles of la sua eccellenza, — or a leaf,
if that it be a bright spot in shade. I am
looking at a little speck of blue through this
dark cedar, now. That is why I can speak.

" Not believe me?

" But you shall believe me ! I will die, here,

213

About These Tales,

before your eyes. Then you will believe. I
will die, now; and you shall see and hear.

"No. Not that. Am I a fool? But give
me those eyes of Desiderio near mine, — he is
asleep, there, behind you, — and I will let you
hear me die. Yes, sir, do now ! Ah, do !
Dangerous? Not at all. Nothing is danger-
ous. Are there no gods, sir? And I will not
venture near the Brown Kingdom. Only to
purgatory, and back. You can call me when
you choose. It will be easy, sir; and most
diverting for you. Also, you will believe. Yes,
sir ! Say that I may ! "

Desiderio was dragged out of a siesta, and
made to lie on his back, with his hands under
his neck, his head down, his throat raised. Toto
lay, breast downward, in the same line, but
behind Desiderio's head, his elbows planted
firmly, his chin in his palms and his eyes
directly above the eyes of my xanthomeirakion.
There was a space of about four top-joints of
thumb between them. They were close beside
my hammock, and I lowered myself till I was
exactly on their level. The brown eyes of Toto
were opened to their full extent, the brows a
trifle contracted, all quite rigid, but with no
suspicion of constraint. Just resolute alert ex-
pectancy. No more. Desiderio had a little
lazy smile playing on his half-open rosy lips.
He was evidently no novice at this game, of
which I had never known. He appeared to be

214

the Key and Purgatory

aware of drowsy pleasures in store. As time
fled, the pupils of his strange eyes dilated, be-
coming very large and black and velvety; and
the yellow irides shimmered like threads of
amber, edging stainless white. F'or some min-
utes there was perfect motionless stillness. Then
Toto began to speak, very gravely, very slowly,
with pauses, varying in duration, between his
phrases, and using a monotone of minor shade.

" O most courteous angel, — my guardian,
— my leader, — my governour, — my guide, —
and my defence, — my most wise counsellor, —
and my most faithful friend, — teach me, — rule
me, — guard me, — guide me, — along the right
road — to the place — where — I wt>uld go.

" I live. Take me through the Gate of Death.

" Take me away.

" I wait.

" O, take me in your arms, and carry me away.

" I want — to move to you.
"I — cannot — move — to you.

"Cord binds.

•' Angel !

" Lift.

"Ah — Let us go. — Now.

"Wait?

" I will wait.

215

About These Tales,

" The Grey Angel !

" My arms there — and hold ?
" Yes.

"Now!

" Drop !

" Rush ! Blackness ! Ave Maria, gratia plena,
Domimis tecum, bene dicta tu in mtilieribus, et
Benedictiis Fnictiis ventris tui, Jhesics. Sancta
Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus
nunc, et in hora mortis nostrcs: amen. Black-
ness. Glimmer. Stop.

" No. I will not move.

" Brown cave. Shadows moving. Dim tapers.
Rush and splash of falling water. Low tunnel
there.

" If I move, I may fall into some pit.

" A light? Thank you.
" Ready.

" Lie down in this car }

" Cramped. Hard.

" Head low. Shade candle.

" You will go behind the httle car, and push?
" Roof of tunnel just above my head.

«' R-u-s-h.

216

the Key and Purgatory

" Tunnel.

" Onward.

" Clank — clank — clank.

" Rocks of the roof are low.

" Walls enclose me.

" Onward.

" Rush.

" Walls widen,

" I cannot see the wall on the right.
" Raise — candle — look. Pf !
" It is gone out. Stop.

" Light it, please. Ah.

"The roof has gone out of sight. Brown
rocks, wet, streaked, patched, with lumps, with
veins, that shine. In front, new opening — hole
in wall of brown darkness.

" Ready.

" Plunge on. Brown darkness.

" Shades enclose me.

" Water drops — runs.

" My neck is cramped by stooping.

"On.

" If some rock of the roof be low enough to
strike my head in this swift rush, my neck will
break. A jerk will snap it.

"On.

" Beautiful walls.

217

About These Tales,

" I am glad that I came.

" Brown rocks streaked with veins all white,
or patched with lumps of glittering grey.

** Air cold as death. Water drips.

" In brown darkness, eyes are dazzled by
shaded light.

"On.

" No sound, except the crash and clang of the
rushing car. Now and then, a distant booming
thud. Gusts of blasting wind. I feel the warm
breath of my angel, at my back. I know his
arms are round the rushing car.

" On.

" The roof has lifted.

" Please, let me see.

" Fissure overhead.

" Little brown hole before.

" Deo gratias ! I can shift — stretch.

" Below, darkness, reflection of my candle in
water. It rushes back in smooth torrent. Are
there any fishes?
" Ready? Yes.

" Plunge.

"On.

" Little gap. Brown darkness.

" Brown nothingness.

218

the Key and Purgatory

" Cannot pierce it.

" Solid wall of brown.

'* As I dash at it, it alway goes in front.

"Is — this — Death?

" Not three minutes since I left the world !

" Well now !

" I like this.

" You have been here often. I, never.

"On.

" Let me see all.

"On.

" Never mind how I feel.

"On.

" Let me see all.

"On.

" Light a-hcad.
" Slower.

" The walls grow wider.
" The light comes nearer.

" Pass. Light on empty car. Shadows wait-
ing near. Each holds glimmering spark.

" Slower.
"Oh! slow!

" Tunnel branches. Smoke. Sulphur.

219

About These Tales,

** Speed on.

** On, to right, with a jolting rattle and crash,
I fly.

" Lower head.

"On.

"Where does the smoky sinister tunnel lead?
How dark !

" And the stench ! To the Brown Kingdom !
Ah ! Hasten.

"On.

"Cold.
Dark.

" Darkness yields — yields.
" Rough-hewn rocks.
" Streaks glittering grey.

" Slower.
" To the left.
" Stop.

" That was a fine swift ride.
" Here are empty grey cars, — dim lights —
shadows moving.

" I follow in your footsteps.
" Stoop.

" To the right. Narrow passage.
" The floor is rough, — wet.

" I refuse to fall.

220

the Key and Purgatory

" Walls rocky — fissured — streaked — patched.

** The passage winds.

" The roof is high — low.

" I follow.

" How can I see without the sun, down here.

" This little candle is the light.

" No. I have no fear.

" Dust lies thick like grey snow.

" A long puddle. The roof drips. I am wet.

"A vast cave. The roof is too high. Walls
far away. Rough.

" Seamed with water. Streaks. Patches. Glit-
tering grey.

" Wonderful !

"Danger?

"What?

" The Lake ? Oh, let me see the lake.

" Is that brown bottomless abyss a lake?

"Bridge?

" How deadly cold !

" There are shadows ! Shadows rise and sink !
Hands ! !

" Faces ! ! They are People ! ! !
" A girl ! I saw a girl !
" Oh ! Let us save them !

221

About These Tales,

"Why not yet?

" When will it be time?

"Who are they?

" Passions?

*' May I pray that they may be cooled soon?

" Libera, Domine, ufiimas servorum Tuorum,
sicut liberasti Noe de dihiviis. Amen.

" Poor souls, in the dark silence, and the ice-
cold water.

" I shall come here. Oh, yes !

" Yes, ready.

" A grey ladder.

•' Light fixed to my head. Hands free.

" I follow you.

" The rungs are cold,

" Dare I look down. No. Up. Up.

" Squeeze through a little gap.

" Another ladder
"Up.

" Foothold shallow, I do not leave one rung
till I have gripped the next.
"Through this gap.

" Rest.

" Another ladder.

"Up.

" Longer. Difficult to climb.

" Gap.

222

the Key and Purgatory

" Another ladder.

" Slanting over brown darkness.

" Water streams down on me.

" I am skin wet.

" Climbing a chimney.

"Ouf!

" Deo gratias.

" High passage. Windy, Dry. Cold.

" Dim lights flicker in brown darkness.

" Shadows wave in the air. They sway in the
wind.

" People !

" Look at the old woman ! Look ! A priest !

" What are they?

" Good — soaked in silliness — vanity?

"And?

" Hang here in the wind till dry?

" Wait, please. Requiem (Etermim, dona eis,
Domine ; et lux perpetua htceat eis. Yes. Ready.

" Down this passage.

" Down.

" I stumble on rough brown rocks — dull-shin-
ing dust.

"Narrow — and low.
" Down.

" Down "

(Toto was absolutely rigid. His eyes were
fixed, intense ; they did not wink, nor flicker. I

223

About These Tales,

scribbled the slow, deliberate utterances which, at
intervals, he made. I very keenly watched him.

Desiderio, also, was devoid of movement. The
smile was faded from his face. His eyes were
open wide, but had fallen upward and inward,
showing much white, little iris, less pupil. His
breast heaved gently and regularly. He was
asleep, undreaming.

I doubted whether I would go down to the
tents, for a shower of rain was coming on.)

" — difficult to walk.

" Warm.

" Slowly.

" Foot-way slants from right to left.

" Slippery grey dust.

" Slant steeper.

" Wall on my right. Touch it always.

" Steep.

" Left leg long. Right leg bent.

" Down.

" Hot.

" Cannot see left wall.
" Touch right wall.

" Crawl along species of edge
" Slipping dusty edge.

" No. I have no fear. — But let me look over
the edge.

224

the Key and Purgatory

" Madonna mia ! A precipice !

"Dull red flames below. People burning.

" Boom. Hot wind. Wait, please, while I
pray. Libera, Domine ajiimas servonan Tuornm,
siciit liberasti tres pueros de camino ignis ardentis :
amen.

" Yes. Ready. I follow you.

" I am trembling. I cannot help.

" No. I have no fear. I trust you.

" Crawling — slowly edge of an abyss —

" The edge slides. Narrow edge.

" Rocks — stones — shining dust — slip — pass
— and fall over — when I move. They fall.
They fall. How far down?

" If _ I _ fall _ »

(This was the most creepy moment of my life.
I know the cataleptick apprehension of a fall,
too jolly well. "^ Toto, Toto, come back ! " I
cried.)

" I come.

" Angel ! I must go home.

" Ladders.

"Down a slanted hole.

" Cool.

" Water streams down.

" Down.

" Another ladder.

15 225

About These Tales,

" Down.
" Down.

" Ground.

" The great cave. The cold lake.
" Brown. Dark.

" Along a passage. Narrow. Wet. Cold.
" Speed.
" Cars again.
" I crouch inside.

"You are behind me? I feel your breath.
Your arms are round the car.
" Ready.

" Plunge forward. Through cold air. Over
rushing water.

" Clank — clank — clank.

" Crash.

" The car runs smoothly. With noise. With
breathless speed. On. The roof is high — Low

— On — Walls wide narrow. — On — Brown

rocks flit by — On — White streaks — Patches of
glittering grey — On — Darkness — On — Dark-
ness Glimmer ahead — On. Flickering

lights. Near — On — Nearer. Nearer. Stop.

" Leave the car. Stretch. Shadowy figures
in the dark.

" Glimmering sparks.

" I have no light now.

" Ah ! Angel —

" Lift me. Let me look back.

226

the Key and Purgatory

" How brown and grey !

" Yes. Ready. Hold me tightly.

" Rush. All black.

" All is gone.

" Rush — Up — Black — Black — Oh, I would
not have missed this for a thousand lire ! — Up
— Rush — Black. Rush. Grey. Up. Light !

"Ouf!"

(Rhudickoneos bounded off the ground, shook
himself, rubbed his eyes, and pushed back his
hair.)

" Sir, how warm it is ! But, — warm ! And
raining ! Per Bacco, look at the rain ! How
long was I away, sir? Nearly two hours?
Fancy that now! Did I say things? Oh, look
at the pages ! Well, well ! — Desiderio ! Mon-
ster of sloth, awake ! Carry the books of la sua
eccellenza. And the tobacco.

" Sir — my arm ! "

227

About Some Friends

XVIJ
About Some Friends

IT was my birthday; and I was going to
treat myself to an aubade.
People are very cruel to me in the way
of neglect. No one ever loved me well enough
to take trouble to find out that which would give
me pleasure. No stranger in the street ever
said to me, " O, sir, why are you so unutterably
sad? " Friends do not to me, as they would
that I should do to them. There is some im-
penetrable mail of ice about me, which only
one dead heart ever has been warm enough to
melt. Sometimes, very rarely, when I speak
long and late at night, the ice wears thin.
Then, kind eyes look at mine, astonishingly
unlidded; and kind voices say, "Oh, if only
we had only known!" — Well! why don't con-
founded people try to know: and know? That
is not difficult, when one desires.

Here was my birthday ; and I knew that no
one, excepting I myself, would care to remember
it, — till afterwards : so I resolved to make myself
the modest ofiering of an aubade, without squeaks,
for once ; and I had ordered two viole, a violon-

228

About Some Friends

cello, a basso-di-camera, and three arciliuti ; for
I can hardly suffer trebles of voice or string
since Claudia, my Augusta, died — died — Do-
meniddio ! You know what voice of lark You
coveted for Your quire, — and robbed from
me —

Toto awakened me at earliest dawn ; and I
moved into the clear cool darkness of the ter-
race of this villa by Termoli, to taste olives
picked (and pickled in lime-water) the night
before, nuts and purple figs, blood oranges and
black grapes, with wines, pitch-flavoured, or with
honey fit for Ganumedes. Yes; Toto had re-
membered my birthday, and had spread my
breakfast with more exquisite elegance. The
wines were in rock-crystal bowls, wreathed with
aloysia citriodoria. The fruits lay in several
heaps on cushions of fresh flowers : grey-green
olives on blue hydrangea, purple figs in a white
cup of magnolia, nuts on heliotrope, red-gold
oranges on milky meadowsweet, black grapes
blooming on the petals of white roses that faintly
blushed. Each cushion was hemmed in by a
bordure of verbena, and glittered with the dia-
monds of early morning dew. I found the intox-
icating odour, and the colour, to be adorable.

The antelucan sky showed one wide flush of
violet barred with rose, and the sea, translucent
opal of black-purple having gold stars in its heart.
In the garden, where dew-drops sparkled on
orange-trees and cactus clumps, a little lower

229

About Some Friends

terrace and pier of marble gleamed like a snow-
drift floating on the sea. While I ate, my seven
gifts of the Santo Spirito raced through the
shadows of the garden.

I dallied with olives. There was no sound,
save the Prime of amsels and of thrushes, and
the laughter of happy boys.

The flaming rim of the sun dawned on the hori-
zon. Beams of vast brightness shot through the
rosy mist. Glowed the sea, like that unconsidered
green-blue gem, aquamarina, set in gold. Eme-
ralds lit among the deeper recesses of the pine-
trees. A white peacock generously displayed,
here, clouds of lustre of the pearls in his pride.

After water, air ; and the boys were taking the
sun. Ercole yawned on the pier-head against the
sky, like the statue of Brutus his favourite, carved
in corinthian-bronze. Desiderio, all pale-gold
with buttercup-yellow hair, moved on to the lawn
with towel a-trail, found a comfortable situation
in the young sun, and fell on sleep. Near him,
paced to and fro my pure Greek, the strong mag-
nificent violet-shadowed Vittorio, model fit for
Andrea Mantegna, arm in arm with the huge and
ruddy Goth, Otone, ablaze with health. The
little tender Guido of chrusoberul eyes, and his

230

About Some Friends

slight glaukos friend, Ilario, delicately dangled
slim frail limbs in the sea from pier-steps, cooing
each to other like white doves.

Toto mounted to my terrace, announcing
arrival of musicians, who attended behind a
cactus-hedge, below.

I gave him a nod, saying, " Sing, you."
He dropped two directive words over the
parapet; and a sense of musick floated upward,
— just a vibrance, — arpegij, low, and full. The
boy's breast rose, gathering the clean breath of
dawn ; from that glorious throat he poured the
marvellous quiet counter-tenor of his jewelled
voice, resonant, restrained, in a little folk-song,
full of sun, and ending in a trillo appassionato.
This is something like :

" The Rose is sweet ; but has the prickly Thorn :
" The Thorn cannot exist without the Rose.

" I saw the Rose ; I did not see the Thorn,
" That hid away behind the sweetest Rose.

" I plucked the Rose ; then wounded me the Thorn,
" That stood as Guardian to the sweetest Rose.

" O Rose ! I 'm like to die from Prick of Thorn !!

" The Thorn was thine !!! Then heal me now, O Rose !!!!

More musick followed, some known, some
unknown : but all low, and full, and very sweet.
I leaned over the parapet, and watched the
sunrise.

231

About Some Friends

Presently, from hidden strings, there welled a
Chant sans Paroles of Tschaikowsky. Finding
it sympathetick, (although an English adaptor of
the musick-halls, devoid of themes, has robbed its
motif for a coster-ditty), at the fifth bar, I
despatched Toto silently to secure its three-fold
repetition.

While the notes rippled, swelled, or cadenced,
Desiderio stirred in his sleep upon the lawn.
When basso-di-camera finally pronounced the
motif in reluctant minor, he sat up, opening
amber eyes. After dying of harmony, the musick
woke again, to take Desiderio captive. Narrowly
I watched him. Here was a thing both new and
strange. Some mysterious power (Personage, as
Toto would say) was his master now. Not I.
This was not a drowsy Himeros, any longer. He
sprang to his feet, with glittering eyes like con-
stellations, and gleaming limbs of gold. Some
magick, born of musick, held him entranced.
He had no more a will, but swayed responsive
to the song of the strings. At the tempoprimo
of the twenty-eighth bar, he found his feet; at the
second farewell to melody, he stepped to the
centre of the lawn. With wonderment we looked
at him. His eyes returned no glance. His soul
was stilled, feet fixed, limbs tense, form motion-
less.

But, at the third outburst of the song, eispnoe
transfigured Desiderio, and he lived. The spirit
of sweet sounds enchanted him. He danced like

232

About Some Friends

a feather in a dream — danced like a fairy on a
leaf — danced like zephuros on a flower. His
flickering feet, like yellow butterflies, played a
gentle allegretto grazioso e cantabile

^r^r' '■' ^1^^^^

upon the daisies in the turf. His limbs were
human sunbeams weaving mysterious intricacies.
He waved, on high and wide, his slender flame-
like arms, floating here, and floating there, with
swiftly-ordered errancy.

7— m 1 — g

His yellow head swayed like a buttercup on
a stem. His lampromeirakiodia obeyed each
rhythmick call. Song found free expression in
the abandonment of his naif passionate move-
ments, now quick and gay aifd crescent, now fading
in cadences of gentle, long-drawn-out regret : again
accenting suncopations with firm flying feet like
flames, then dying — dying — dying to the slower
unconquerable minor,

233

About Some Friends

sempre dtjn.

ihnjj— 1

-^■•^ 9 4 1 — f- ■ - — \—\ ^ 1

— ^ — W-H

and the collected emotions of final chords, when
the dancer danced no more.

I signed for- a change of musick. Desiderio
drifted into the shade of trees, and slept.

"Well, Toto?" I said.

" Yes, sir, a strange thing, and divinely lovely.
Also miracolossissimo. I shall think better of
Desiderio now, seeing that some Personage has
deemed him worthy of such an inspiration."

"What Personage?"

" Sir, I don't know ; I — : " — he made a native
gesture of dismissal.

" Is there not a story of some god who danced
— danced with angels? "

" Yes, sir, Sanvito, Child of Lucca, was so
graced."

" Is that history worthy of a hearing? "

" Perhaps no, perhaps yes," he answered
dreamily, and looking down into the garden.
"Sir, this is all very sweet, is it not? And suit-
able for your birthday, sir, — this garden, — and
the air and sky, — and this great peace. I hope
that Don Friderico is happy to-day? "

" Quite happy, O chare puer. — And about
that Child of Lucca?"

234

About Some Friends

" Ah, the Child of Lucca. Yes. — But you
are happy? That is well. — Therefore, we also
can be happy. — Did it ever occur to you, sir, to
think how very excellent is the friendship between
Vittorio and Otone, down there? They are both
so rare, so fine, — so mighty, — also friends of
Domeniddio, being full of grace, according to the
Scripture where it is written, The Grace of the
Lord. Yes, I am pleased to see them as friends,
like my Guido and Ilario. One must have a
friend after one has found oneself. Oh, yes ! I
had Beatrice,^ requiescat in pace. After her, I
want no friend. Ercole, he has not yet found
himself; therefore he needs no friend. But he
will, soon. Guido and Ilario have paired.
And Desiderio, — he has Sleep for his friend.
You, sir, have no friend ; and you are at all
times entirely sad ; for to have no constant
friend is worse than death. But to-day you
can at least see happiness, and I hope it has
come so near your lips that you may taste. —
Yes, I am very glad to see Vittorio and Otone
going arm in arm like that, because they remind
me of the two Friends of Lucca, who are gods,

— yes, sir — of Lucca, sir, — the two Friends of
Lucca, who are gods, sir ! — Who said Lucca?

— Ah, the Dancing Child of Lucca! — but now
I speak of the Friends of Lucca; not of that
Dancer. Would you care to hear a story, sir?
A story about friends, sir? — Quite respectable
persons, sir ! Also loving — loving beyond

235

About Some Friends

everything, sir! — A story for your birthday,

sir?

It was precisely what I wanted.

"Then, sir, with the aid of Sangiovannino
detto II Divino, who himself is God's Own Dar-
Hng, I shall tell a tale of friends ; of the Two
Boys of Lucca, who were friends, and are gods in
paradise. And, in the beginning, you shall know
that you cannot have your choice of friends. No.
The Padre Eterno makes for everyone a friend ;
and, at the proper time. He lets each see the
other. You know in your heart directly you see
your friend; and it remains with you to say
whether you will take and keep him. For you
must perform special duties, if that you wish to
keep your friend ; and those duties are many and
great and sometimes troublesome — sometimes
terrible. Yet pleasure may be attained only
through the gate of pain ; and friendship is a con-
dition of perfection difficult to reach, hard to
maintain, but more full of benediction, when
achieved, than any other, as you shall learn from
the Acts of the Friends of Lucca.

" They are called Santamelio and Santamico :
in Lucca they were born many hundred years
ago.

" They were gorgeous and beautiful as young
lions, like Vittorio and Otonc ; huge and vast of
frame, strong and mighty of limb, made in the
largest and most splendid moulds, first copies.
And, in colour, sir, they resembled this." (lie

236

About Some Friends

invited attention to the dazzling white little heap
of meadowsweet, with a red-gold orange lying
on it.) "That is like Otone, for Santamico,
sir; — skin — and hair; — and eyes? — eyes? —
like the buttons of your sleeves, sir." (Dark
brown topazolite, very rich and liquid.) "And
Santamelio was hke Vittorio, as to his colour;
just as you may see here." (He showed the
mound of white-rose petals delicately flushed,
whereon a cluster of blue-black grapes reposed.)
" Skin, — hair ; — and eyes ? — eyes like these, —
clear as the sky, and deep as the sea." (He
dropped on to the rose-petals, two star-like
Chinese blossoms of intense and burning blue,
whose names I do not know.) " They were like
that, sir; — like Vittorio and Otone.

" Amelio was sixteen years of age, fifteen
Amico, when first each discovered the other at the
Baths of Lucca, and knew that they were meant
for friends. So Amelio took his knife, and cut
his left arm ; and Amico took his knife, and
cut his left arm also ; and Amelio offered his
arm to Amico ; and Amico offered his arm to
Amelio ; and Amelio sucked the blood of Amico ;
and Amico sucked the blood of Amelio, all in
the antick manner : and, when the blood of Amico
was in the veins of Amelio, and the blood of
Amelio in the veins of Amico, then they were
friends for ever ; because Amelio lived in, and
was, Amico; and Amico hved in, and was, Amelio,
in Scccula saeculorum : amen.

237

About Some Friends

;;»

" Now it chanced that these two friends were
pagans; for, at that time, many pagans still
remained in the world, even among the most
noble families. Amelio and Amico wished to
change all that; though for what they did not
know. They ran away from their pagan rela-
tives, going out into the world together ; and,
in course of time, they came to Rome, to Rome
the Chief among all cities, to Rome the Home of
the holy gods, to Golden Rome. And it was
Sabbato Santo,

" Very early in the morning, the Santo Padre
was going in procession to the Church of San
Giovanni Laterano, to perform the ceremonies of
Sabbato Santo with all pomp and majesty; in
which ceremonies, as you know, sir, they have
the habit of baptising a Jew, a Turk, a Pagan,
and an Heretick. Well: and it fell out that, on
this Sabbato Santo of which I speak, there was
no Pagan handy, nor could the clergy of San
Giovanni Laterano find one anywhere.

" The Santo Padre, Whose name was Costan-
tino, was coming through the streets on His white
mule, — gladly, when He considered how that
perhaps the world was becoming altogether
Christian, seeing that no Pagan could be found ;
and yet sadly, because He did not like to miss
out any part of the glorious Office : — and, as He
passed, He blessed the faithful who knelt by the
roadside, crowding the Piazza San Giovanni
Laterano.

238

About Some Friends

" When He reached that spot, there stood
Amelio and Amico, right before His eyes. Their
appearance was so singular, that the Romans had
left them in a little group by themselves ; not
being fond of foreigners having a mien as of wild
lions, similar to these two boys. For, la sua
eccellenza will remember that it was a long jour-
ney on foot, from Lucca to Rome, which they
had made, lasting many weeks, and costing many
pains. They had lost their way in forests, living
on nuts and berries, or on wild beasts which they
killed with knives. They had swum rivers,
climbed the mountains, and breasted every sort
of storm and stress : and now they stood in
Rome, tanned, footsore, hungry, and alone, their
clothes in tatters, their strong limbs bruised,
and aching, and their young hearts faint; but
they held heads high, eyes fearless, and boldly
faced strange faces ; for, as yet, they knew not
whether they would be treated well, or ill. And
to them came the Santo Padre Costantino.

" When He saw these two mighty boys of
foreign aspect, — all the same as your Vittorio and
Otone, sir, — and marked how that they did not
kneel to Him, as did the Romans, for they lacked
knowledge, not respect; then the heart of La
Sua Santita leaped for joy, and He was aware that
the Padre Eterno had been very merciful, having
sent Him, not one Pagan, but two, and altogether
splendid examples, whose conversion would be
quite creditable to all concerned. And the Santo

239

About Some Friends

Padre reined up His mule, looking on Amelio
and Amico with much love, saying to them,
' Dear children have you the happinesss of being
Christians? '

" Amelio and Amico courteously answered that
they did not know whether they were Christians ;
but certainly they were friends.

" The Santo Padre would know whether they
desired another Friend, Who was very loving,
and very strong.

"Amelio and Amico answered, No; because
a new friend might try to separate them, one
from the other.

" The Santo Padre said that the Friend of
Whom He spoke, was not that kind of friend,
being One Who would knit true friendship
closer.

*' Amelio and Amico answered, that such a
Friend as that was greatly to their liking ; and
they enquired whether they might know His
Name.

"The Santo Padre said, that He was called
the Signor Cristo.

" Amelio and Amico answered, that the Name
sounded very well ; but they did not know this
Signor Cristo.

" The Santo Padre said that nevertheless the
Signor Cristo knew them, and had wished them
so well that He had died for love of them.

" Amelio and Amico asserted this to have
been done without their knowledge ; for, if that

240

About Some Friends

they had known this generous Signer, and His
surpassing Love, they would have lost their
lives for Him, rather than have Him lose His
Life for them. Friendship demanded that, at
least; they said. But, seeing that the Signor
Cristo had died before they knew Him, what use
was there for more words?

" The Santo Padre answered that this Signor
Cristo was a King ; and, by His admirable power,
He had conquered death, and was alive for ever-
more. Also, the Santo Padre said, that this
same Signor Cristo, living in a distant country
more beautiful than eyes had ever seen, had
sent Him Who was speaking, to offer eternal
Friendship for the acceptance of these two
boys.

" Amelio looked at Amico : Amico looked at
Amelio. Each read assent in the eyes of the
other. Therefore, they said, that they were
ready to swear a friendship with the Signor
Cristo, without prejudice to the friendship al-
ready sworn at the Baths of Lucca.

" The Santo Padre would know in what manner
they had sworn ; and Amelio and Amico told
Him how that each himself had wounded, giving
to the other his blood to drink, so that they
might be one in blood, in saecula saeculorum :
amen.

" Then, the Santo Padre, saying that He
knew a better ceremony than that, took Amelio
and Amico into the Church of San Giovanni
i6 241

About Some Friends

Laterano ; and, at the appointed time, having
stripped them of their rags, He plunged the
tired way-worn bodies of these half-wild boys
beneath cool water in the baptistery, saying,
' Antelio,' or ' Amico, Ego te baptizo, in Noviine
Patris, et Filij, et SpiriUis Sancti' Also, He
marked a cross upon their lion-like brows, bid-
ding them to know it for the Sign of the Signer
Cristo ; and He clothed them in clean white
tunicles of coan cloth, whose bordures were of
purple, resembling the Sangue Preciossissimo of
their new Friend, the Signer Cristo. And, so,
Amelio and Amico were made good Christians,
to the immense admiration of the crowd stand-
ing by.

" After this. Papa Costantino took them to
live with Him in His palace ; for it would be
altogether a foolish thing to neglect a person's
body, if that you wish to save his soul ; — oh,
in those antick times, they had some sense : —
and, presently, when they were well-instructed
in Christian Doctrine, and recovered from the
dolorous hardships of their journey. La Sua
Santita sent them to the court of the Emperor
Carlomagno, with a letter which required his
majesty to treat them handsomely and to give
them an education.

" When that sublime sovereign had read the
letter of the Santo Padre, and had seen these
boys to be very splendid creatures, likely to do
him credit, he made them pages of his presence;

242

About Some Friends

and let them learn the use of weapons, and the
duties of a court, with other noble boys who
served him, according to the custom of that
age.

" These foreign boys had no love for the
Friends of Lucca, being jealous that the Lord
Emperor should let his favour shine upon them ;
but Amelio and Amico were happy each in
other, and did not need to go about to seek for
friends. At all times, to their rivals, they showed
generous courtesy, as was to be expected ; and
they easily surpassed them in exercises of high
nobility. Wherefore, those pages became more
than jealous of Amelio and Amico, hating them
with bitter hatred, and taunting them in secret
with bad words. And soon Amelio became of the
age of nineteen years ; eighteen Amico. Their
illustrious deeds had placed them high in the
favour of the Emperor Carlomagno, who raised
them from the conlegium of pages to make them
knights of his guard ; and always their friendship,
each for other, remained Impregnable. Then
their enemies, on fire with malice or imbecility,
thought to destroy them by sowing discord.

" It happened that the lion-like Amico led in
marriage a girl called Gisela, because he felt that
marriage would give him satisfaction. And the
envious pages chose a scoundrel of their number,
called Ebbo, in whose mouth they put cunning
words.

" It was the marriage-feast. Amico sat with

243

About Some Friends

the head of Gisela on his breast. Guests were
merry, drinking wine, and beginning to scatter
nuts to boys who scrambled for them on the
floor. But Amelio had no mind for mirth; and, at
Ave Maria, he left the feast, drinking on leaving,
as the custom is, to the love of Sangiovannino
detto II Divino.

" He strolled out into the forest, where he
might be alone, and to him came Ebbo, speaking
courteously enough, concerning trees, birds,
weapons, the loveliness of Gisela, the bravery of
Amico. Also, he dared to suppose that day to
see the end of the curious friendship between
Amico and Amelio.

" When Amelio asked him very sharply for a
reason, he said that Gisela would take care of
that : whereat Amelio drove a crashing fist into
his face ; saying sternly, ' You have lied in your
hairy throat;' and waiting, while the lout found
footing, and spat teeth. Then Amelio said, ' Let
me tell you, sir, that in speaking against the
honour of the Lady Gisela who is wife to Ser
Amico, you have spoken against the honour of
Ser Amico, who is friend to me; and in speaking
against the honour of my friend, you speak
against my honour, which I will always vindicate.'
He touched his sword, questioning with an action
of his brows. Ebbo answered with bared blade.
The lie, and the blow, given, demanded this.
They fought till night, when Amelio slew him,
and buried his carrion in the forest.

244

About Some Friends

" So was Amelio loyal to his friend Amico, on
the point of honour; and he was not less faithful
to him in regard to his spouse at all times, to
whom he yielded the service of a knight, with the
kind love of a brother.

*' After a year, during which the sun rose
always on the right, and set on the left side of
their bed, Gisela gave twins to Amico, male
children full of grace, with heads like stars, re-
sembling those I have of Beatrice ; |^ requiescat
in pace ; and Amelio was glad because his friend
Amico had much joy, having given handsome
hostages to fortune.

" Then, it pleased the Signor Cristo to try the
texture of the friendship of these two Friends of
Lucca, sending a terrible trial; and this was the
manner of the same.

"When the sons of Amico were about six
months old, and flourishing like a pair of amorini,
plump, healthy, and delicious as a nosegay, there
came a day on which Amelio paid no visit.
Amico was astonished; for never before had a
day passed without salutations and sweet words :
but he considered how that Amelio might be
occupied with business of the Emperor Carlo-
magno ; and he left it so. But, when another two
days passed without his friend, nor any news of
him, Amico went to the lodging of Amelio. He
found the door unlatched, the bed undisturbed.
He found no sign of any kind, save that the
Image of the Signor Cristo Crucified, which

245

About Some Friends

used to hang upon the wall, had disappeared. No
one had seen It, or Amelio, go.

" With dolour was the heart of Amico torn.
All night he grieved, so that he could not sleep.
Gisela lay with her babes, alone ; but, at his stool
of prayer, Amico knelt, praying to his Friend, the
Signor Cristo, to Whom he cried continually, ' O
Friend of friends, why has Amelio left me? And
whither has he gone? If that You had sent him
some great joy, he would have told me, and
would have let me take a share. But he has told
me nothing ; and is gone away. Therefore, I say
this, — You have not sent him joy, but dolour;
and now, all the more, I demand my share of
that because he is my friend. I say, that I demand
this as my right; and You must say where You
have hidden Amelio in his pain ; or You are no
true Friend to me, O Signor Cristo ! '

" The Signor Cristo, sitting on His throne be-
yond the stars, heard the plaint of Amico. The
Signor Cristo smiled to Sangiovannino detto II
Divino, who is God's Own Darling, standing
very near His throne; having pleasure that the
Pattern of Friendship, which He had deigned to
set, should be so well exemplified. The com-
pany of heaven became aware of the pleasure
of the Signor Cristo ; and all the gods who had
been friends while living in the world, and who,
now, are friends in paradise, came clustering to
watch Amico stand his trial.

" All night long Amico cried to Him.

246

About Some Friends

" When it was near the break of day, the Si-
gner Cristo considered the first stage of the trial
to have been passed with credit. To the gods
who stood by, He put this point. Their kind
eyes moved not from the passion of Amico, so
true, — so constant; — their hearts were full of
love ; they breathed no word : they only signified
assent with their immortal eyebrows.

•' The Signer Cristo envoyed an angel to Amico,
at the break of day ; who said, ' My Master bids
me say, So far, well done, thou good and faithful
friend. Also, He would know whether thou
wishest to bear further dolour, for the sake of
friendship, without wavering.'

" ' Lord Angel, it is enough for a friend to be
as his Friend, a servant as his Master. I will
bear all : ' Amico said.

" To him, the angel answered, ' Go then, to
such and such a place in the forest, where thou
shalt find Amelio, and receive new dolour.'

" Amico tarried for mass ; but not for meat.
He stood not upon the order of his going ; but
he went, following the guidance of his angel.
All the long day he went ; and, at Ave Maria,
he espied a lonely figure kneeling by a tree in
prayer. It was Amelio. Amico, at a distance,
called to him words of love. But, when Amelio
heard, he rose; and, in a voice whose accents
might not be denied, he forbade Amico to ap-
proach, wrapping his hands in his cloak, mean-
while ; veiling his face.

247

About Some Friends

" Amico was amazed that his friend should
use him so; and, at a space of ground which
one might cover saying two Ave Marias, he
stayed his steps; saying very gently, that he
was come in friendship to share the dolour of his
friend.

" And Amelio answered, ' O well-beloved, I
knew that thou wouldst wish to share my do-
lour; therefore I fled, lest harm should touch
thee. For the Signor Cristo has been pleased
to send me a dolour which I must bear alone.'

" Amico said that he meant no disrespect to
the Signor Cristo; but he would not have it so.

" Amelio answered, * But thou canst never
share this dolour, for it is personal to me.'

" Amico asked what might be this dolour ;
and why Amelio veiled his face, suffering no
approach, nor the embraces of his sworn friend.

" Amelio answered, ' O, my Amico, the Signor
Cristo has deigned to smite my body with a dire
disease; and, though my heart is bursting with
my love, yet I may never touch thee, nor let
thee breathe my tainted breath, lest thou become
as I am. Therefore, in secret, I am fled away;
and here I will live where no man lives, until the
Signor Cristo bids me come clean to Him.'

"'O friend,' Amico said, 'surely some leech
might heal thee? '

" But Amelio let the cloak fall from his face.
It was as white as dead snow. Beneath the
trees, he stripped himself. He was all as white

248

About Some Friends

as dead snow. He uttered no word. In silence,
he showed all his dolour to his friend, hiding no
particular of his shame. He was like the leper
in the Evangel.

" Amico knew. The horror of knowledge
froze his blood. He could not speak, nor move
one limb for horror. Amelio cried to him, ' Fare-
well — Farewell — Farewell — ' and vanished
among the thickets.

" Night in the forest. Night in the soul of
Amico.

" He left the place with faltering step. Hot
were his eyes with tears, which manlihood kept
unshed. There was choking rage in his throat.
He forgot his wife, the Lady Gisela. His ears
were deaf to the cooing of his little sons. He
flung himself before his Image of the Signor
Cristo Crucified. No words would come from
his paralysed lips: but, in his soul, he gasped,
' O Signor Cristo, if that You want anything of
mine, take it, for the sake of Amelio, my friend.'

" The Signor Cristo heard. He looked upon
the shining gods, and said, ' O younger brothers
of Mine, here, at last, are very faithful friends !
For the trial of his friendship Amelio is smitten
with leprosy. For the sake of the friend he loves,
he deprives himself of the love of his friend. But
Amico, also, wills a sacrifice for the sake of his
love for his friend. Let us see whether the loyalty
of these two will remain constant after the last
Trial.'

249

About Some Friends

" And, from the Signor Cristo, an angel flew
to Amico, with this message, that La Sua Maesta
most mercifully condescended to accept, as a sac-
rifice for the healing of Amelio, the lives of his
little sons.

" Amico leaped up. His visage had the
fierceness of a lion. ' Is He as cruel as that? '
he said.

" The angel answered, ' He is not cruel ; but
He knows.'

" Then Amico said, ' I thank you, O Signor
Cristo. I, also, will know. Therefore, you shall
have my sons ; for I am true to You, as I am
loyal to my friend Amelio.'

" He took his little sons, sleeping. He wrapped
them in his cloak, still sleeping. He thrust a
knife into his boot; and hied him to the forest
as the day was breaking. At sunset he came to
a little brook, buried amid trees, whereby he
found his friend Amelio, also sleeping.

"Amico approached. Now, he had no fear;
but only faith. He took his little sons on his
left arm : his right hand gripped the knife. He
held their heads over the body of his friend, —
white as dead snow : he laid cold steel across their
throats. The innocent babes awoke ; and looked
up in their young father's face, smiling at him
like flowers, as he was about to kill them. He
drew the keen blade through their throats, slash-
ing clean and deep from hilt to point. The little
smiling heads fell to the ground: and, on the

250

About Some Friends

body of Amelio, white as dead snow, blood
poured like purple rain. And, by the mercy of
the Signor Cristo, Amelio awakened from his
sleep, and sprang up with his health all whole,
and his body noble as a god.

**When he saw Amico, in an agony between
grief for his murthered babes and joy for his friend
restored, Amelio said, ' O friend, have you done
this for me ! ' His angel whispered in his ear.
He took the lily children from their father. He
laid them down. He put the head to each. He
signed them with the Sign ijl of our salvation.
And, immediately, the Signor Cristo gave new
life ; and the babes awoke from death ; and lived,
wearing always round their throats a rosy scar,
until the gate of paradise was opened to them,
after long years.

" Amico their father, and his friend Amelio
were happy each in love of other. They lived to
prime, always doing illustrious deeds, until the
children were well grown, and well bred in piety
and high nobility: then, in a battle against a
wicked king of Lombardia, the Signor Cristo
raised them to His Kingdom, giving to each a
diadem of oak and ivy, that all the company
of heaven might know these generous Friends of
Lucca for models of friendship and true love, such
as I see growing, between the very gracious Vit-
torio and the very resplendent Otone, on this
the birthday of la sua eccellenza."

251

About the Penance

XVIIJ
About the Penance of Paisalettrio

OTONE (deinos, whom I called The
Goth, having acquired him at Milan
on account of his fiery hair, and his
gigantick mien of barbarian) was driving the
mules to bathe. He rode a barebacked one of
cream-colour, matching his own skin; and, at the
distance, resembled a young centaur ; for he was
a very daring rider, and sat his mount with indi-
visible conjunction.

I watched these animals as they frolicked at the
water's edge.

There is a point to the N. N. W. of the Tower
of San Felice, where the shallow shore ends
abruptly, and you drop into water of twenty
cubits and a span. Otone was ignorant of this,
(indeed, none of us knew it till afterwards) ; and,
riding in their rear, he drove his charges out to
sea; with the result that, from wading, they
plunged into an unknown depth. Then they lost
their heads, and there was a scene of indescrib-
able disorder. Otone swam his mule round and
round, and through and through, the snorting
crowd lashing hooves at him, refusing obedience.
He was not their master now. He turned his

252

of Paisalettrio

own beast to the shore, and landed her. He
leaped into the sea, (he was the most magnificent
swimmer), and tried to catch another. But, as
well might he have tried to halter the white
steeds of Poseidon. The mules were wild. It
was one boy against many monsters ; and I waited
to see him brained and drowned.

On the nick, entered Toto Ephoros, inevitably
adjuvant, flinging away a towel. He bestrode
my pony, riding like the wind.

Into the deep he dashed ; and slid off the pony.
With his right arm he swam alongside ; with his
left he gripped the beast and the bridle. Avoid-
ing Otone in the thick of the fray, he swam the
pony among stragglers on the left, and thence
right out to sea. The mules tossed heads, sniffed,
fell into line, followed. He led them for some
distance ; and, curving to the right, returned. In
shallows, he remounted ; and gained dry land with
all the mules behind him, cowed, commandable.

The boys ran down and hobbled them ; while
Toto spoke severely to Otone at his emergence;
who stood attentive, humbled, indignantly sheep-
ish. Imagine a sheepish lion, please !

Presently, I caught Toto's eye. I beckoned.
He finished a scathing exordium to Otone, (ex-
ordium which I could not hear, but read from
gesture and expression) ; resumed his towel, and
climbed up to my perch.

"That was rather good," I said; in praise of
andragathema.

253

About the Penance

He was shaking the sea from his hair, and
panting after his exertion ; but he smiled, and
acknowledged the compliment.

" What were you saying to Otone?"

" Just that he was a fool, sir."

"Why? It was an accident: and I consider
him to have behaved bravely."

" Well, perhaps bravely; and that was his duty.
But accident? No. It was ignorance, sir. All
these many weeks, that boy has seen the pony in
front of the mules when we are travelling. He
thinks that it is there only to prevent la sua
eccellenza from being discommoded by the dust.
He never troubled himself about looking for all
reasons. He was content with that one. Yet he
rides always in the rear, where he might see
many things without looking. I — Teodoro —
ride in front with you, sir ; and, from that situa-
tion, I have remarked the mules to follow, giving
no trouble, when the pony leads. Otone —
beautiful giant, strong and agile of body ; — plain
dwarf, feeble and lazy of mind — has seen noth-
ing. It is ignorance, sir; not accident."

" I, myself, was ignorant of this, O ingenious
one."

" Vere dignum et iustum est, squum et salu-
tare, that Don Friderico should be ignorant of
mules. The charge of mules has not been laid
upon you, sir. For you, pictures of the gods,
and the guidance of the flying quill, and the study
of printed things. And to the cult of these you

254

of Paisalettrio

bring all curiosity, all knowledge, all devotion.
Vittorio to his cookery ; Ercole and Desiderio,
Ilario and my Guido, each to his own employ-
ment; and I, to all, bring ardour to make per-
fect what we know, and curiosity to invent fresh
knowledge. For one knows very little; and
everything in the world is waiting to be learned.
Yah ! — Let Otone learn mules first, mules se-
cond, and mules for all eternity. And then there
will be one mule which he does not know."

Gumnephebos went on drying his hair with the
towel.

He had been a naughty boy : — over-ate him-
self hideously on Sunday, made himself quite
ill; ran away to Vieste on Sunday evening;
spent the night and Monday there; came back
at hestern sunset, penitent; confessed the usual,
for which I whipped him in private, without
compunction, and without reserve : and he spent
last night in, or near, the sea. After these out-
breaks of natural naughtiness, salt water was the
adscititious penance which he inflicted on himself,
as a work of supererogation. It was his firm
innate conviction that the sea, which made his
wounds to tingle, was a moral as well as a physi-
cal purifier. And, certainly, he emerged from
prolonged solitary swims with all his virtues
furbished up to the fine point to which expression
has been given.

" But, tell me another thing, Toto. You know
that you yourself have done a brave enough

255

About the Penance

deed. Otone, for whom you have no love, was
in peril. The mules were wild, — dangerous.
And you risked your life. Why did you do
that?"

" Not my life, sir, but my death. One's
death is an easy thing to give; and of little
value to the giver. Anyone, even a guardian-of-
the-publick-safety, would give his death to save a
stranger's. It is a duty. But to live, — sir, it is
very difficult to live, — to live for some other!
Well, one can only do that, when that other is
one's friend; — when one loves. As for Otone,
he is not my friend. Therefore, I throw him my
death as I would throw him a silver five-pence.
It may be of some use to him. It is nothing to
me. — Also, I did it for a penance ; " he added,
assuming a chitoniskos anakolos.

"Penance?"

"Yes, sir; penance. I have been a wicked
boy since Sunday. Last night I confessed. I
am truly contrite. I am forgiven. Now, I must
pay my debt. Part, I paid with my flesh to the
twigs of la sua eccellenza. Part, to Domeniddio,
with salt water on my weals. Then, when I saw
Otone in peril, my angel-guardian, my mind's
master, shouted in my ear, ' To him, Toto ! ' So
I went. I have saved him. Also, the mules.
Don Friderico looks on me with favour. I have
obeyed my angel-guardian. I am clean. I am
happy. Houp-la ! "

He was dressed now, and his exultant eyes

256

.A^

of Paisalettrio

sparkled, seven times purified. I moved into
the shade; and gave him a cigarette. "Con-
tinue; " I said.

" Yes, sir, it is quite simple. Penance is one
of the few things upon which you can count for
certain. The Padre Eterno has deigned to make
laws; not many; nor troublesome: but just
some, and all very necessary. If you obey them ;
well. If you disobey them ; penance follows —
follows disobedience just as lesso follows minestra.
It is short, sharp, inevitable. And you cannot
whine, or blame anybody except yourself ; because
you get no penance, unless you qualify for it.

" Observe me with woodcock, and take warn-
ing. When there is woodcock for breakfast, I
become a fool. I devour woodcock till my
stomach is stifif — but, stiff! Then I cannot
move. I sleep, I snore, I ride a kicking night-
mare. At Ave Maria, I wake with muddy eyes.
My head wants to burst. On my tongue there
is a taste resembling hot and rusty sin. Then I
become wicked. After that, I go in penance,
because I was greedy, and a fool, also a divel.
Then I say that I will never eat woodcock any
more. But, all the same, the next time I see
woodcock, I eat; and, after the rest, I take
another penance.

"Also, when an angel tells you to do a thing,
you will be well advised to do it, for your own
sake, if for nothing else; lest a disgrazia should
befal you.

17 257

About the Penance

" Formerly, there was a boy called Paisalettrio.
He lived in the city of Ancona in antick times :
and he came to a bad end, because he did not
pay attention to the orders of an angel.

" His mother was a beautiful lady, called the
Signora Paha. Paisalettrio lived with her, all
alone, in a house on the city-wall which had a
terrace looking over the sea.

" When Paisalettrio was twelve years and six
months old, the Signora Pafia spent her time in
pious works ; for she was clever with her needle,
and she made admirable pieces of arras, showing
pictures of holy personages, which she sold to
hang up in the churches at Christmas, or at
Easter, or at other feste. Such is the arras
hanging in the chapel of Our Lady of Dreams at
Deira ; all needlework of fine colours, very mar-
vellous, and more pleasing than pictures painted
with a brush, because it can alvvay be seen from
every place, having a surface which does not
shine. In this way, the Signora Pafia employed
herself under the protection of San Gabriele
Arcangiolo.

" Her only angor lay in her little son, this
Alettrio of whom I speak ; for he was an un-
speakably lazy bo}', given to sleeping his days
away in some shady corner of the terrace on the
city-wall, or in a couch of soft sand which he
would scratch out on the shore. And at night
he would sleep like any Christian. To be warm,
and comfortable, and drowsy, was all that he de-

258

of Paisalettrio

sired ; and his sleepiness caused him to become
as plump as a beccafico : indeed he resembled
Desiderio in his plumpness and his sleepiness.
He was a great grief to his mother, though he
was very beautiful, — beautiful as she was ; — for
it gave her pain to see him eternally idle. Some-
times she considered that it would be well that
he should die ; not because she lacked affection,
but because she wished to have him in safe hands
before he took to sin : also, she knew that the
Padre Eterno allows some children to die for the
sake of their parents, that these may have a
chance of burying the dead ; for whoever buries
a virtuous person — a child, for example, — per-
forms a corporal work of mercy, and obtains
pardon for all iniquities. But Alettrio did not
die. Many times, his mother asked him to help
her in her work, holding her skeins, sorting her
colours, threading her needles. But when she
woke him, and demanded this, he only said, * To-
morrow;' and curled his little plump limbs
again in sleep. He thought that there was no
necessity for him to do anything, except just to
be beautiful ; and that he did to perfection, as
everyone could see. So his mother took conso-
lation from the thought that, after all, one cannot
have everything; and that the Padre Eterno had
shown her much favour, in giving her a son more
sweet and exquisite than any amorino ever seen,
for which she offered thanks each day, remember-
ing that a fine appearance is worth much gold.

259

About the Penance

" Now, on a certain day, the protector of the
Signora Pafia — that is to say, San Gabriele
Arcangiolo, — chanced to have no particular
business on his hands; and, as an archangel can-
not bear to sit idle, he resolved to make a little
journey to the city of Ancona, that he might
give himself the pleasure of looking at the arras
in the churches. So, having made himself in-
visible, he flew down from paradise ; and he
spent several hours, going from church to church,
admiring the needlework pictures, worked by the
Signora Pafia, which hung upon the walls, as
well as those which he found folded up in presses
in the sacristies, only to be brought out when it
was necessary to decorate the churches in a
special manner for some important festa.

" In the Church of the Archangels, he became
very sad : for, though this church was dedicated
to the honour of him, and of the other princes,
his brothers, he could not find a single picture in
likeness of himself, or of them, either on the
walls, or in the presses of the sacristy.

" This was a condition of affairs which no arch-
angel could be expected to bear with an even
mind. It showed the devotion of the people of
Ancona towards his highness, and towards their
highnesses the other princes, his brothers, to be
very cool indeed. Therefore, being invisible, he
went and whispered in her ear, demanding of the
Signora Pafia whether she considered herself to
be behaving properly in neglecting to make a

260

of Paisalettrio

needlework presentment of his person, that all
the world might have the honour of seeing him
as he is.

" The Signora Pafia answered, that she would
use her needle very gladly to make his likeness,
if she knew the way: but that he had never
deigned to show himself to her, nor had the
other princes, his brothers.

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo said, that what they
did was one thing, and what he did was another.
They were old enough to look after their own
interests. If they did not choose to have their
likenesses made by her, he did so choose. And
he bade her to hold herself in readiness to receive
him privately that same night, when he would
grant her the grace of a vision of him as he is;
and, also, would show her in what way to work
his likeness in arras, similar to the arras hanging
in the churches and palaces of paradise.

" Then San Gabriele Arcangiolo returned to his
duties, for the remainder of the day, showing
himself freely as usual, to the angels and to
the gods, in order that no one should suspect
him of planning to escape into the world at
nightfall.

" The Signora Pafia, on her part, made her
preparations ; sweeping her house, and decking
it with fresh flowers, with sweet herbs on the
floor; washing herself from head to foot, and
putting on her festal habits, in honour of her
guest. Also, she arranged her coloured linens,

261

About the Penance

her needles, and her threads, and all things
necessary for working pictures in arras.

" When the night was dark, down in the world,
San Gabriele Arcangiolo watched his opportunity.
As soon as the gods and the angels had settled
themselves for a pleasant evening with their
friends, he descended to the house on the sea
wall of the city of Ancona. He had taken the
greatest care that no one should suspect his
absence from paradise, because he wished to
have his likeness made in arras before the other
princes, his brothers. It would not be the first
time that he had set a fashion ; for he is of a
disposition which avoids a second place, when a
little cleverness will win the first. He copies no
one; and, as I have said, that ordinary arch-
angels should do certain things in certain ways,
is a sufficient reason for San Gabriele Arcangiolo
to do the same things in other and better ways.
He is an original. And enjoys the taking of
pains.

" When he alighted on the terrace before the
house of the Signora Pafia, by an act of will he
made himself as small as a large handsome youth
like Vittorio, that is to say, of more than four
cubits in height; in order that he might not be a
terror to the lady by reason of his tremendous
size: but, of course, being an archangel, no
change could diminish by an atom his royal
beauty.

" It was a fine hot night in summer. The

262

of Paisalettrio

sea was smooth as glass ; and the sky was
clear.

" He entered the door of the house, saying, ' I
am San Gabriele Arcangiolo who stand before
Domeniddio, and I am come to speak to you.'

" The Signora Pafia kneeled down, and kissed
the floor before his feet, saying, Angeliis forth
Gabriel^ ut hostes pellat antiguos, et arnica c(eIo,
qiics trmmphator statidt per orbem, teinpla revisat,
and the rest.

"And San Gabriele Arcangiolo taught her,
and spoke to her, and said, ' O lady, I am come
now that I may teach you, and that you may
understand many things.'

" Then she led him into the room wherein she
was used to work ; and she shewed all her
materials ready, the coloured hnens, the thread,
the needles, the scissors, and the wax.

" But, before beginning the business which had
brought him down, San Gabriele Arcangiolo said
that someone must keep watch, in order that he
might be able to return to paradise before the
break of day. He went to the bed where the
plump little Alettrio was sleeping ; and he picked
him out, all drowsy, just as he was ; and he put
him on the terrace in the moonlight; telling him
to sit there, and to keep his eyes open, and to
watch the distance where the edge of heaven's
dome seems to rest upon the sea. He must not
lose sight of that for an instant: and, directly he
saw a thin knekine streak run along that edge, he

263

About the Penance

must step into the house, and give warning.
Did he understand?

" Alettrio answered, * Yes, my lord archangel ; *
and he sat down by the door of the house, and
fixed his drowsy eyes upon the far-off edge of
heaven's dome.

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo shut him out, and
returned to the Signora Pafia; and he bade her
to take a large sheet of coarse linen, coloured like
a peacock's breast, and to stretch it on a frame
about six cubits high and four cubits wide.

" When this was done, he drew upon the linen
with his finger; and, wherever his unerring finger
went, white lines appeared as bright as nacre,
having about a thumb's breadth.

*' On her knees, the Signora Pafia watched this
marvel; and, there, was a veritable likeness of
San Gabriele Arcangiolo as he is, all drawn in
white lines on the linen coloured like a peacock's
breast.

" He explained that the white lines must
be left as they were ; but, that the spaces vari-
ously shaped, which they enclosed, must be filled
with linen pieces of the proper colours : he took
the scissors, and visited the stock of coloured
linens.

" There, he chose a piece of silver-colour shot
with rose ; and he cut from it the shapes of his
dalmatick, his amyct, and his stola, and the shape
of his wings. These, he laid in their proper
places, on the linen coloured like a peacock's

264

of Paisalettrio

breast; and he bade the Signora Pafia to sew
them there with silver-coloured thread.

" While she was doing that, he chose a piece of
flesh-coloured linen; and he cut from it the
shapes of his face and neck, of his hands and arms
from which wings sprang, and also of his swift feet.
These, he laid in their proper places, on the
linen coloured like a peacock's breast; and he
bade the Signora Pafia to sew them there with
flesh-coloured thread.

" While she was doing that, he chose a piece
of snow-white linen ; and he cut from it the
shapes of his hair, of his albe, of his scroll, and
of the blooms of his lily. These, he laid in their
proper places, on the linen coloured like a pea-
cock's breast, and he bade the Signora Pafia to
sew them there with snow-white thread.

" His highness cut the stem and the leaves of
his lily from green linen ; the pearls of his coronet,
of his apparels, of his orfreys, from pearl-coloured
linen; the shape of his halo, of his coronet, and
of his winged sandals from gold-coloured linen.
These, he laid in their proper places, upon the
linen coloured like a peacock's breast; and he
bade the Signora Pafia to sew them there with
green thread, and pearl-coloured thread, and
gold-coloured thread.

" He put his fiery swiftness into her hands, so
that her fingers flew; and his likeness came upon
the arras in an hour, as though by magick art.

"But the naughty boy Alettrio, outside, had

265

About the Penance

put his forehead on his knees, and his plump
arms round his leg; and, so, he fell asleep,

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo bade the Signora
Pafia to observe that her work was not yet
finished. He bade her to take threads of shadow-
colour, and to work lines upon the linens, till
the noble contours of him shone through the
silver dalmatick, and through the snow-white
albe, as through a film of gossamer. And, so,
he made her work the features of his face, the
fingers of his hands, the toes of his feet, the
feathers on his winged arms, the leaves and
the petals of his lily, the shadows on his coronet
and on his winged sandals, and the folds of his
vestments of arcidiacono. Round the rim of his
halo, he bade her to work the letters,

ECV^'^M G^BREI^RM NGIzS

and the letters on his scroll,

AVM RAGeTapE NA

" Here was as much work as seven and thirty
ladies could do in seven and thirty months; but
San Gabriele Arcangiolo caused the fingers of
the Signora Pafia to fly so fast, that, in a matter
of three hours, the arras was complete, no stitch
remaining to be done. It presented the pale and
mystick figure of the Prince of Fire, more than
four cubits high, shining like life upon the linen
coloured like a peacock's breast. Oh, an admir-

266

of Paisalettrio

able work ! And he told the Signora Pafia to
use her skill, and to give him a bordure of a
cubit's width, of fiordalisi, blue on gold, which she
could do at her leisure and without his aid.

• • • • ,

" While these things were being done in the
house on the sea-wall of the city of Ancona,
other things were being done in paradise. For
the hours of night had slipped away to rest;
and, at last, the Padre Eterno deigned to give
the signal for a new day to be born. San
Michele Arcangiolo brought to the gate his halo,
flaming with the Fire of God; and, there, he
placed it on the chariot which Sant' Auroraele
Arcangiolo, successor of Lucifero, drives slowly
round the outside of the wall of gold, to burn up
any unclean opinions which apish daemons may
have expressed there while the night was dark.
The silly world calls this Fire the sun. In truth,
it is the flaming halo of San Michele Arcangiolo;
and, when he places it on the chariot, a thin
pale yellow streak runs along the distance where
the edge of heaven's dome seems to rest upon
the sea. Then, all the little kings and princes
of the world put on their little crowns, and adore
the Maker of the Sun ; and the whole orb of the
earth turns round and round to win its light and
heat in every part, so that men may wake from
sleep, and go to mass, and work, and play, while
the birds burst into song, and fruit and flowers
raise their heads to smile in bloom.

267

About the Penance

" Well : the narrow knekine streak ran along
the distance, where the edge of heaven's dome
seems to rest upon the sea ; but the boy Alettrio
slept on. He saw no light. He gave no warn-
ing. He was happy, so happy, sleeping in
the cool air; and his dreams were dreams of
pleasure.

" The chariot of the sun left the gate of para-
dise; and began its journey round the wall of
gold. As it moved, the city of Ancona moved
to meet it; and the sky broke out in rays of
dazzling light.

" San Michele Arcangiolo was making his
morning round on the ramparts of heaven, and
his eyes happened to rest on the terrace on the
sea-wall down below. He saw there, a boy sleep-
ing with his forehead on his knees, and plump
arms clasped round his legs. His highness con-
sidered it to be a strange place to choose for
slumber, at that early hour; and he flew down
straightway, to look a little closer. Perhaps the
boy had lost his friends. Perhaps he had no
home. Perhaps he had been deserted by cruel
parents. Such things have been known to
happen. At all events, a boy sleeping on a
terrace, altogether as though he were, and at an
hour when he ought to be, in bed, was a matter
which needed a looking into. All angels love
boys, being boys themselves; and San Michele

268

of Paisalettrio

Arcangiolo descended from heaven to see whether
this one required him for his champion.

"But when his highness aHghted on the ter-
race, he heard voices speaking, within the house.
He crept to the window and took a peep. There
he saw San Gabriele Arcangiolo teaching the
Signora Pafia to make his likeness in arras, all
quite happy and comfortable. He looked be-
hind him ; and there was plump Alettrio asleep
outside the door.

" The Great Prince was back again in paradise
before a flea could hop once; he called upon the
other archangels to share his mirth. There was
that Prince of Fire, he said, down there in a
private house, teaching a lady to make his like-
ness in arras, he said. The slyness of him, he
said ! The vanity of him, he said ! To go
and try to steal a march upon the princes, his
brothers, he said ! And to get his likeness made
in arras on the quiet, he said ! Proh pudor, he
said !

" And San Michele Arcangiolo brought the
other archangels down, to the house on the sea-
wall of the city of Ancona, to prove his words.
One by one, those princes peeped through the
little window ; and they saw San Gabriele Arc-
angiolo teaching a lady to make his likeness in
arras. And they watched ; and they waited.

" Presently San Gabriele Arcangiolo heard a
lot of little chuckles ; and, when he looked at the
window, behold ! a row of grinning archangels,

269

About the Penance

pointing fingers at him, saying, ' Ah, sly-boots,
we can see, we can see ! Ah, sly-boots, caught
you there, caught you there ! '

" The Signora Pafia was confused by the honour
paid to her poor house ; but San Gabriele Arc-
angiolo burst into a rage, and shouted, ' Where
is that confounded boy whom I set to keep
watch ? '

" He rushed to the door.

" There sat the plump little Alettrio, sleeping
— sleeping, — his forehead on his knees, his arms
clasped round his legs.

" San Gabriele Arcangiolo seized him by the
hair, and woke him ; saying, * Miserable little
rascal, what is the meaning of this?'

" Alettrio rubbed his drowsy eyes, and stared.

" ' Did I not tell you to watch for the yellow
streak, and to warn me when the dawn of day was
near? ' San Gabriele Arcangiolo demanded.

" * Yes, my lord archangel,' Alettrio said.

'"Then, why have you disobeyed me?' San
Gabriele Arcangiolo would know.

" ' If you please, my lord archangel, I slept
too long,' Alettrio said,

" ' Slept too long, indeed ! ' San Gabriele
Arcangiolo continued. 'Who gave you leave to
sleep at all, I should like to know? Sink of sin
that you are ! Here's a pretty pickle ! Look at
all these princes who mock me ! All through
your abominable laziness ! — Does this boy go
to mass, Signora Pafia? No? Cannot get him

270

of Paisalettrio

out of his bed? Ah, I thought not! Always
sleeps too long, does he? I '11 teach you to
sleep too long, my boy ! I '11 have a change; or
I '11 know the reason why ! Now listen to me ! '

"' ' Yes, my lord archangel,' unhappy Alettrio
said.

" ' From this time forth, for evermore, when the
first narrow knekine streak runs along the distance
where the edge of heaven's dome seems to rest
upon the sea, you shall wake from sleep, and
you shall sing aloud to warn the world that
daybreak is at hand. That is your penance,
Paisalettrio,' San Gabriel Arcangiolo said. He
gave a sign.

" At this, the pretty pink toes of the disobedient
boy shrivelled, and became sharp and thin, with
claws, three in front, and a longer one behind. His
pretty plump legs shrivelled and became covered
with scaly skin. His knees slipped round to the
back. His pretty plump body burst out into
feathers, brown, red, and yellow, and a little white.
His pretty plump arms became wings which he
flapped, and black-with-green plume ended him.
His nose and chin became sharp and hard as
horn, and snapped together like a beak. His
drowsy eyes became alert and fiery red, and
slipped back to where his ears had been. Under
his pretty plump chin, the skin became scarlet,
and dropped with the weight of blood. His hair
also became scarlet, and stood up high and fierce
upon his head.

271

The Penance of Paisalettrio

"'ijl Be a cock,' San Gabriele Arcangiolo com-
manded.

" And Alettrio became a cock.

" He sprang up and tip-toed, all alert and bright,
upon the sea-wall of the city of Ancona ; and he
sane aloud to all the world, ' Cock-a-doodle-doo !
Cock-a-doodle-doo ! Cock-a-doodle-doo!' which is as
much as to say, * Get out of your beds, you lazy
scamps ; and say your prayers, and go to mass,
and do your work, and play your play, and sleep
your sleep ; and never, never, never, shut your
ears against the orders of an angel?'

• • • • •

" So, sir, whenever I hear the cock crowing
before the break of day, I say some pious words
for the soul of the plump little Paisalettrio of
Ancona; that, when the ultimate day of judging
shall arrive, he may be found to have made
satisfaction by his penance ; and to have merited
the greatest happiness, for always."

272

About Our Lady of Dreams

XVIIIJ

About Our Lady of Dreams
HERE was no sleep for me.

How many hours I wasted, wooing
sleep, I do not know. How many prayers I
prayed to the gods in their content, I cannot
say. How many charms and incantations I pur-
veyed to those antick beings who, according to
most respectable authorities, are no more than
names, — they are all written in the book of my
deeds, on a page which I have not seen.

There was no sleep for me.

On this single summer night, a fire burned for
no cause in my brain. Thoughts, ideas, fantasies,
problems to be solved, came, thick and fast, with-
out and against my will. It seemed as though
some kakodaimon rode my intellect, riding to
delirium with whip and spur. Lying there, as
still as death, clutching crucifix and rosary, and
the miniature of my dead, my closed eyes saw
myself as I was, driven from my road, my life's
career wrecked, blocked, checked, — whichever
i8 273

About Our Lady of Dreams

you will, — thrown out of my stride, thwarted in
my sole ambition, utterly useless. Other men
envied the freedom which was mine ; they would
have welcomed the happiness, and health, and
power, which were offered to me in mocking
substitution for the bonds I craved. But not I.
That would be too common. I was wretched. I
was near distraction. No drug would give me
peace. No prayer, rest.

There was no sleep for me.

■ • • • •

I opened the mosquito net; and lighted a
lamp, and a cigarette. I tried to read Cardinal
Franzelin's De Ecclcsia. But, at the foot of every
page, I knew that I knew nothing of the printed
words. They pierced no deeper than my eyes ;
for the uncontrollable mechanism of my brain
was occupied with other things. I extinguished
the light, and beat my pillow till it was cool and
soft ; and again I tried to sleep. Fresh theories
of life, of death, of loveliness, of love, arose like
phantoms; and marched to scale the plateau of
my imagination. But, when the first head came in
sight, I ascended the chariot of Will, and grasped
the reins ; and, resolutely, I crushed my foes.
Each in his turn, systematically, monotonously, I
stamped them down, refusing parley or quarter.

• • • • •

The weight of the bulk of dead ideas which I
had slain, weighed heavily.

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About Our Lady of Dreams

I was barely conscious, now ; and I knew that
victory was mine.

• • • • •

The stress of conflict was dying away. I
passed into the grey haze surrounding the
kingdom of sleep. I was near — oblivion.

• • • • •

With a shock, I fell ; — fell into the clear black
pit of sleep : and, turning sharply on my pillow,
I was wide awake again.

There was no sleep for me.

I got out of my hammock, and found my
slippers and a gown. I took a soft white bath-
towel for a cloak; and sauntered through my
tent-door into the moonlight of the forest of La
Guardiola.

How cool, how delicious it was ! How soft,
how fresh, the air ! How exquisite the fragrance
of juniper, and honeysuckle, and lentiscus, —
of the breath of earth asleep ! I kicked away
my slippers, and let my feet revel in the velvet
turf. Through the trees, where the valley de-
scended to the sea, I saw the silver water all
a-shine. The mountain-sides of breccia were
clothed with solemn beeches, and ilexes, thickets
of pine, giant fennel, brank-ursine, and wild arti-

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About Our Lady of Dreams

choke, like the black-blue of peacock's eyes in
shadow, and like frosted silver where the moon-
light's magick played upon them. The glade
was carpeted with silver, of such admirably
clarity that every blade of grass was dignified.
The distance melted into solitudes, vast recesses
and profundities, mysterious, obscure. Over-
head, the leaves and branches of the trees hung
in net-work and arabesks of silver filagree, laced
with the diamond webs of spiders ; and, higher
yet, behind this veil, the sky, a dome of helio-
trope sown with stars, wherein the lambent moon
was sailing, in a plenitude of majesty, high
above the sea.

I peeped into the other tent, where my seven
deadly sins were sleeping. They slept, having
no minds to torture themselves withal. The
curtains at both ends were open ; and the seven
hammocks swayed gently in stillness. There
was a plate of honey and dead insects, with a
lanthorn standing on the ground, whose glimmer
gave little gleaming passages of gold. The pure
breath of these boys was like a posy. Their
mothers must have lived on citrons. They were
unknowing; and, therefore, happy: and they
slept. I turned away.

There was no sleep for me.

• • * • •

This was a world carven of cool malachite and
lapislazuli, with intricate broideries and bordures

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About Our Lady of Dreams

and fringed orfreys of white jade, and alabaster,
and smaragdus, and rock-crystal, obsidian, and
basalt, and black jasper, all set upon a luciferous
field of lilac sapphire. The fresh odours of the
night were clean. — I wandered away, till I came
to a little point of rock, moss-cushioned. Here
I sat me down, and watched the moon, and the
sea. The air was soft and warm. Caressing. —
Surely these silent things would show benig-
nance ! — How admirable was that sky; pale at
the horizon, deeper in the height, flecked with
faint shapes and shadows with silver outlines;
and, dominating all, the moon, — the queen.

The wistful voice of Toto enquired whether
I was in want of a companion.

Looking round, I beheld a slim faun of the
forest all in white. A sheet, draped like a palla,
played upon his ankles bare as ivory. His calm
eyes glittered like snow diamonds in the brown
rose of his skin. Such a note of black was his
curly head, in the sumphonia of that night !
Such a picture ! I said that he might stay.

He moved beyond ; and sat down where his
contours were silhouetted on the silver sea.
He was marvellous, — and so still. Presently,
I would know why he came : and he answered,
very gently, that he had been dreaming of Bea-
trice, his beloved ; tfy requiescat in pace : when
his angel whispered that Don Friderico was in
trouble; that, then, he had felt my presence

277

About Our Lady of Dreams

near ; and, waking, he had seen me turn away,
and wander to and fro, as one who suffered sad-
ness, silent in pride. Therefore, he had risen ;
and, having pinched the others, one by one, not
mahciously but enough, in order to make certain
that they slept, he had followed me ; and here
he was.

I gave him my hand : but no words. Every-
thing was so lovely and so pleasant, that I could
almost hear the footsteps of approaching peace. —
Makroskelephebos said that he would go to give
order to my bed ; and he left me.

The moon rode high ; and the silvered sea
glittered in her beams.

Toto returned to his station, bringing snow-
honey, and tobacco, and things ; but I put them
away, for the aromatick air had done nothing
to deserve defilement. After a time, he asked,
whether I had mentioned to Madonna that I
wanted sleep.

Indignantly I answered, that I had recited four
times fifteen mysteries of the rosary, all to no
purpose.

But, he persisted, had I addressed myself to
Our Lady of Dreams?

To make him speak, and to add to the plea-
sures of my senses, I answered that I did not see
the good. He picked a branch of myrtle, and
waved it while he spoke.

" Sir, when I want to ask a favour from you,
I do not go to Otone, nor to Ilario, asking that

278

About Our Lady of Dreams

they should ask for me. No. I am your own
chosen slave, enjoying favour, and of you I have
no fear. Therefore I watch you in your moods ;
and, when I am satisfied, I come boldly to ask
for what I want. Well then ! And Our Lady of
Dreams is the mood of Madonnina in which
she will refresh her friends with sleep ; and, in
the sleep which she will send, there are lovely
angels bringing dreams, to teach you holy mys-
teries good for the health of your soul. I think
this to be the most courteous mood of Madon-
nina, kinder than any other; for sleep is to a
troubled mind the supreme mercy. As in a
glass darkly, you have seen her, in her picture in
her chapel of Deira, where she walks among the
stars, between earth and heaven, sending dream-
angels to instruct some person in their sleep ; to
the Signor Patriarc' Abramo, to the Signor Pa-
triarca Giaccobe, to the Signor Faroa Re, to the
Signor Capitano Guidione, to the Gran Patriarca
Sangiuseppe, and to many others. And, there,
if only you will look with faithful eyes resembling
mine, you now may see La Sua Immacolata
Maesta." He rose, pointing firmly to the sumptu-
ous sky.

I admitted that I saw pale stars, and the
moon, and faint shadows of peacock-purple
fringed with ostrakon.

He supplied a noble gesture, with the branch
of myrtle. " Sir, that is Our Lady of Dreams ! "
He performed a dignified prostration before the

279

About Our Lady of Dreams

moon, as I should at Elevation, or Exposition,
of the Host.

" Every night that Madonna goes her journey
round the world, sometimes early, sometimes
late, sometimes this way, sometimes that way.
Always there are, with her, many million angels
for an escort; and persons, who are not faithful,
see them as well as I, who am faithful : but they
have not those spacious eyes which see the whole
pageant in a glance, as I see it; for the angels
are huge and vast, and Our Lady of Dreams, also ;
and persons with little narrow eyes have the gross
stupidity, and impertinence of bronze, to call those
shapes merely clouds, which manifestly are the
lights or shadows of the white wings of angels
ever-moving, and the folds of Our Lady's trailing
robes of darkest blue. Crowned, also, is that
queen, crowned with the twelve stars, according
to the scripture : and you may see that crown,
when the crowd of her innumerable followers is on
the other side, as now. And, in her consecrated
hands, she bears the Holy Host, giving benedic-
tion to the world. That is the real truth about
the moon. It is the Great Pearl, the True Light,
the Peace which passeth understanding, — II
Santissimo, Himself."

This, then, was why Toto adored the moon.
I, myself, as a student of the rare, had often
pondered over the supreme and ineffable White-
ness of the Host in a custodial : a Whiteness not
accidental, but essential, dominating the ligvit of

280

About Our Lady of Dreams

tapers, the whiteness of silk, or satin, or marble,
and every circumstance of illumination, by the
force of Its unapproachable purity. It was a
beautiful theory, this — that the moon is the
great Host of heaven, giving unending benedic-
tion.

There was a long pause. Then I said, " But,
bad dreams, naughty dreams, o formose? Sure-
ly-"

" No, sir. Those come not from Our Lady of
Dreams, but from the Other ; and I do not know
her name : but certainly she is a kakodaimon ;
for everything is two, good and bad, light and
dark, man and woman, no and yes. As for me,
I cannot tell you about that Other, because I do
not meddle with her, — at least, not more than
enough; and, after, I am always very sorry. Ah,
yes! Baf!— Shall I go on, sir? Or shall I
dance for you upon this green?" He grasped
his drapery, and fetched a step or two. " Or
would you choose to taste a very solemn little
song, sir. Ombra mai fu, sir, with chitarone,
sir?"

" Tell me of a case which Our Lady of
Dreams has soothed with sleep, — sleep which
tells you what you want to know."

" Very well, sir. And the best tale of that
species will be the tale of Frat' Innocente-of-the-
Nine-Quires. Do you choose that one, sir?
Well then — In former times there was a boy — "

" W hy do you tell me always about boys? "

281

About Our Lady of Dreams

"BQCdi\xse,s\v, like perceives like; and I, being
a boy, know most about my fellows. You have
said that we are amusing, and quaint, not
a blot upon the view; and that some of us, I
being one, can tell you of the future, or describe
things happening in distant provinces, reflected
in such matters as a bubble, or a drop of ink
upon the finger-nail or palm of hand. Yes. I
speak of boys because I am a boy. But I know
of girls, also ; — oh, yes, I know girls, — and I
have tales of girls. And I know women, not
more than enough : also, some men, and particu-
larly priests. When I am older, perhaps old
people will amuse me. But, while I am young,
I speak of the young; because, being young,
I know the young; and there is my answer.
Am I to say more ?

" Well, then, sir, there is a proverb which says,
Happy is he who has boys for his friends; and,
therefore, — In — former — times — there — was
— a — boy !

" He was called Diodato, and he was of the
age of eighteen years. Also, there was a girl
called Coronata, and she was of the age of six-
teen years, and pure ; and Diodato wished her
well. Also, in the same village, there was
another boy called Aristide, and he was of the
age of nineteen years; and he, also, wished
Coronata well. Diodato was a boy of sound
mind, good health, quick wits, unblemished body,
and singular beauty. In summer, he was a

2S2

About Our Lady of Dreams

shepherd on the mountain ; in winter, he brought
his flock into the plain. Having no kin, he
Hved alone in a little house, — little house in-
herited from his dead father. Coronata was
the daughter of a miser who lived in a poor hut,
high up, on the lower bordure of the forest.
Aristide was a butcher in the village, fat, lasciv-
ious, greasy, and sallow as boxwood. Also he
smelled of blood.

" And it happened, on a certain festa, that
these two boys leaned against a pillar in the
church to hear mass ; and Coronata was kneel-
ing near them, but among the women. Diodato
and Aristide saw her; and they wished her well.
No one could complain of that, when it was
seen how very rare she was. Only the eyes of
Diodato sparkled. He did not move nor show
his love, save by the brightening of his eyes.
Aristide, otherwise, breathed so lustily, shifting
his fat from one foot to the other, that he shook
an evil stench of his trade out of him ; and made
some nostrils flicker, and Diodato furious, being
annoyed that Coronata should sufler the incon-
venience of this stinking hob. And he leaned
toward Aristide, whispering the courteous sugges-
tion that he would do well to give himself a
good sluice down under a pump, before he
should come to mass on some future festa. A
greasy scowl and a bad breath were all he got
for his politeness. But, when the mass was
finished, he stepped after Coronata ; and, in the

283

About Our Lady of Dreams

piazza, with a chaste mind, and a face a-flame
with modest blood, he offered to her very
respectfully the carnation from his cap, saying,
* To her beauty.' The sedate Coronata smiled,
as she took his blossom, exulting in her heart
with joy, because of the declaration of the lad
whom alone she loved ; and she gave him a
' Many thanks.' But Aristide snorted with rage
at this ; for he had no flower to offer, and
nothing in his cap but grease and blood of
beasts. So Diodato walked with Coronata;
making diligent love to her all that day until the
Ave Maria; and, when there was music, he
danced industriously with her : and all the girls
envied Coronata her Diodato ; while Aristide
eyed him with fat eyes full of hate.

" Every festa of that summer and autumn, the
same thing happened ; and Diodato was known
for the chosen lover of Coronata: but sullen
Aristide increased in fat and grease and evil
stenches only.

" One day during the wintry frosts of Ca-
pricorn, Coronata and her Diodato were coming
out of church, wrapped in one cloak, for the
weather was bitter cold ; but, cold as it was, it
had not cooled the rage of Aristide, and boiling
hot was his hatred. As the lovers passed, he
came beyond harmony, speaking calumnious
words. And, when they gave him no answer,
he emitted a howl of wolf, and rushed on Coro-
nata, brandishing a terrible knife. But he did

284

About Our Lady of Dreams

not know his Diodato, who was quick, agile,
supple, though so slim and graceful that it would
take two of his size to make one hog like Aris-
tide; and, in an instant, his wrist had been
struck up, his knife sent flying. Coronata
screamed, and ran away. Diodato, raging,
sprang like a cat upon the fat and greasy
butcher. As well might he have dashed against
a tree ; for the bulky carcase of Aristide was
solid, insensible of blows. Therefore, the fight
was not a fair one; and, before anyone could
say, ' Apoplexy,' the butcher bore with all his
weight on Diodato, and crushed him senseless
to the ground. Then he fled ; for people were
rushing to succour Diodato, who was a favourite
in that village, where every one thought well of
him : but, in wickedness, Aristide determined to
do a worse thing for revenge, and wound the
heart of Diodato, as well as knife his back, at a
more convenient time.

" They carried the shepherd boy to his little
house, and washed the wounds which his head
had taken from the ground hard frozen; and
Coronata came, and gave him kisses till he recov-
ered from his swoon. He was weak, and giddy,
all that day ; but, to those who stood by, he prom-
ised that, in the course of time, he would show
Aristide who was master, in a fair fight, with
knives, before witnesses. And, at nightfall, Coro-
nata went to her poor hut, high up, on the lower
bordure of the forest ; and Diodato was left alone.

285

About Our Lady of Dreams

" That same night, when all the village slept,
Aristide scratched his right ear, to excite the
kakodaimon of revenge who sits there ; and then
he went creeping, creeping, towards the lonely
hut of Coronata ; for he knew that there was no
one with her in the house, her father having
gone on business to the neighbouring city: and
he resolved to burst in upon her, in the dark,
and, by sheer force, to help himself to the
hoarded moneys of her father, and to loosen her
girdle of wool. If Diodato should care to know
her after that, — well ! — He had forgotten that
there are other powers beside the will of a wicked
butcher-boy. But Sathanas had not forgotten.
Does His Wickedness ever forget matters which
concern his interest? By no means! Sathanas
coveted the soul of Aristide. He knew that it
would be his some day. But here was a chance
to grab it, now ; for Aristide was set out upon a
sinful errand, unaccompanied by his angel-guar-
dian, who had been forced to leave him when
counsels of perfection were treated with con-
tempt. So Sathanas set a kakodaimon to lie in
wait for the soul of Aristide.

" He made his way towards the poor hut of
Coronata, high up, on the lower bordure of the
forest ; and the path up the rocks was narrow ; and
the night was very dark. A black frost froze the
earth, till it was as hard as bronze ; and chained
the rills in icy fetters. The road was slippery
and steep. Frozen bushes tore his face ; but he

2S6

About Our Lady of Dreams

hurried on, his heart being hot with sin. And,
when he reached the turn, where the path is very
narrow, passing under the httle torrent which
falls from the summit of the cliff, death struck
him ; and he died.

" The father of Coronata, returning at noon of
the day following, was the one to find the car-
case. He fled into the village, raising an alarm.
Guardians-of-the-public-safety came to make
themselves necessary. The day was bright and
sunny, for a thaw had set in at dawn ; and, on
the wet ground, they found the body of Aristide,
lying on his back, dabbled in blood, stone-dead
of a frightful wound in the throat. He carried
no knife. There was no knife near him.
Therefore, the case was said to be a homicide.
No one knew what might have been his business
on that path ; but when the gossips of the village
bowed the chin of doubt upon the collar of medi-
tation, they remembered the rivalry between
Aristide and Diodato ; and that Diodato had
sworn, no later than the day before, to make the
butcher pay for alarming Coronata.

** So Diodato was taken to prison as a mur-
therer ; and the Signor Sindaco and the Signor
Avvocato Micci tried to make him confess to the
slaying of Aristide. But all in vain. There were
no words of that kind in his mouth. He swore
that he was innocent; also, that he had never
seen the butcher-boy, alive or dead, after the
affray in the piazza.

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About Our Lady of Dreams

" Coronata, who visited him in prison, beHeved
him ; but the others, no. They allowed them-
selves to see no more than this, — that there was
bad blood between Diodato and Aristide; that
Aristide had been killed; that the knife — the
knife which did the deed — could not be found ;
that Diodato had no witnesses to prove him in-
nocent, being an orphan, living alone, with none
to say whether or no he had left his little house
on the night of the homicide.

"In prison, Diodato suffered bitterly; for the
weather had changed again, and the nights were
icy cold. But he strenuously besieged with
prayers II Santissimo Salvatore, e La Sua Madre;
and, once a week, he confessed his sins to Frat'
Innocente-of-the-Nine-Ouires, who came to the
prison, instantly and every day, on hearing of his
spiritual son's disgrazia.

" Now this holy young friar had known Dio-
dato all his life, being his elder by a mere hand-
ful of years : and he was quite sure that Diodato
was no murtherer. What the shepherd-boy told
in confession, cannot be known; but Frat' In-
nocente-of-the-Nine-Ouires let it be seen that he
remained the friend of Diodato ; also, when
speaking of him in the village, he said that, un-
doubtedly, it was Madonna's business to make
his innocence clear to all the world : meanwhile,
prison would do the boy no harm, but good ;
for he knew himself not to be a saint, and took
his present pains by way of purgatory. With

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About Our Lady of Dreams

these words, and with others Hke them, that
friar cheered the few friends of Diodato, and his
lover Coronata. And, as the days passed by,
and the time drew near when Diodato must
answer before the judges, Frat' Innocente-of-the-
Nine-Quires spoke very seriously to Madonna,
reminding her of the innocent boy in prison.
Also, he thought profoundly, visiting the place
where Aristide had been slain, searching dili-
gently under every tuft of weed, and under every
bush ; also, he broke the ice of the pool under
the little torrent ; and, having dismissed Coronata,
he dived and dived again and again, till his holy
young body was one vast ache of cold: and this
he did, in order to the finding of the knife which
slew the butcher-boy ; for, by the knife, he hoped
to know the murtherer.

" And at night he prayed without ceasing.

" Here, sir, I will beg you to remark the kind-
ness of Our Lady of Dreams.

" After many days of this work, and many
nights of prayer, there came a time when Frat'
Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires knew that he must
either sleep or die. It was about one hour after
sunset; and he kneeled at the window of his
cell ; and he saw Our Lady of Dreams, bearing
the All-Pure Host to bless the world in sleep.
And he prayed, and said, ' O Madonna Mary,
called Our Lady of Dreams, please to help me,
as you have helped my betters in antick times.
Send me some hours of wholesome sleep, that
19 289

About Our Lady of Dreams

I may have strength to aid, in his grave danger,
that young Diodato. He is a good boy, Ma-
donna, who loves you well, by reason of the
greater love he bears toward your Son. There-
fore, as you have taught the holy ones by
dreams, teach me also by a dream, that I may
know what to do for Diodato. O Rex caeli et
inferni, raarisque et terrae, accept my humble
prayer from these pure hands in which I place
it ; and deign a gracious answer, as soon as may
be. Per Jhesum Christum, Filium Tuum, Do-
minum nostrum. Qui Tecum vivit et regnat, in
Unitate Spiritus Sancti, Deus in saecula saecu-
lorum ijl amen. Et fidelium animal per Miseri-
cordiam Dei cjl requiescant in pace.' Having
said these words, Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-
Quires laid himself upon his bed. His mind was
calm and happy. He had done his best. And,
now that his best had failed, he placed the
matter in the Hands of Personages Who were far
more capable than he. And with perfect trust,
with perfect confidence, he slept like a little
child.

" Our Lady of Dreams heard his prayer: she
willed to grant him his request. Our Lady of
Dreams presented the petition of the friar.

"II Santissimo heard him; He said to Our
Lady of Dreams, ' Ask on, My mother, for I may
not say thee nay.'

"The Padre Eterno heard him, in the fragrant
recesses of His temple : He accepted the petition

290

About Our Lady of Dreams

and He deigned to smile, and to let His Favour
shine, saying, l^ll^l^ PLACET ET ITA MOTU PRO-
PRIO MANDAMUS.

" The Personages are speedy, sir, up there. A
holy thought, a look, the Smile of God, and the
matter is accomplished. From Our Lady of
Dreams, there flew a swift angel to the cell of
Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires, who whispered
in his ear; and every word resembled a picture
which his eyes could see. This was his dream.
He saw the dead butcher-boy alive, making his
way to the poor hut of Coronata, high up, on the
lower bordure of the forest; and the path up
the rocks was narrow, and the night was very
dark. A black frost froze the earth, till it was
hard as bronze ; and chained the rills in icy
fetters. The road was slippery and steep. Frozen
bushes tore his face ; but he hurried on, his
heart being hot with sin. And, when he reached
the turn where the path is very narrow, passing
under the little torrent which falls from the sum-
mit of the cliff, he panted for breath, and stopped,
and put out his left hand to catch some drops of
water. But there were no drops of water, for the
little torrent was frozen ; and the dream-angel
made Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Ouires to see
it, hanging in icicles far overhead. Aristide was
astonished when he found no water ; and he
lifted up his head to look. The friar, in his dream,
also looked ; and he saw the kakodaimon seated
on the summit, who, at that instant, snorted fire.

291

About Our Lady of Dreams

And, immediately, a long sharp icicle came hiss-
ing down, and slit the weasand of Aristide, who
gave one sob, and fell down dead. Then said
the dream-angel to Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-
Quires, ' Little Brother, at dawn thou must go to
the Signor Sindaco, and to the Signor Avvocato
Micci, and to the Signor Dottore Pulobeni ; and
thou must require them to come with thee, to see
in what manner Aristide the butcher-boy met
his death. Then, thou must take a pig tied on
his back upon a plank, and two strong men to
carry the same ; and thou must go to the turn
where the path is very narrow, passing under
the summit of the cliff; and, there, thou must
place the pig upon the proper spot, — spot known
now to thee; and my Lady will give a sign
solving mysteries.'

" Therefore, at dawn, Frat' Innocente-of-the-
Nine-Quires took all those persons named by the
dream-angel, and a fat pig tied, kicking, on a
plank. The day was fair and fine, and before
the rays of the sun, the frost was flying away.

" ' Imagine to yourselves, my children, that
each one of you is Aristide clambering up this
abominably steep path of the rocks,' the friar
said. ' The night, you will remember, was very
dark. Aristide must have stumbled often.

" ' Now we are coming to the turn where the
path is very narrow, passing under the little

292

About Our Lady of Dreams

torrent which falls from the summit of the
clifif.

" ' It is evident that Aristide, who was a fat
boy, must have been out of breath ; — all the
same as you, my children.

" ' Pass on, Signor Avvocato, and Signor Dot-
tore, please; pass on up there. So!

"'Now, Signor Sindaco, will you stand below
here with me?

" ' Beppo and Marco, hold this plank like that.
So!

" 'Now my children, let us consider, in the first
place, that Aristide is this pig. Perhaps he may
have wished to refresh himself with cool water,
here. Let us suppose that. Well, then. Let us
consider, in the second place, that he would
stretch out his hand to catch some drops from the
little torrent. You grant me that? Well, then. —
But where is that little torrent? — There is no little
torrent ! — But there must be a little torrent — ! !
"'Ah, well, my children, let us be calm, and
let us raise our eyes to heaven. Behold, my
children, behold that little torrent hanging in
icicles far above !

" ' Now, let us consider, in the third place, that
Aristide would have looked up, as you have
looked up. You grant me that? Then we will
take the pig for Aristide, and make him throw
his head right back, and look up, also. So ! —
See, my children ! Let us suppose that Aristide
looked up like that —

293

About Our Lady of Dreams

"'But you wish to know more? Well, then,
let us conclude — '

" Frat' Innocente-of-the-Nine-Quires went no
further with his demonstration ; for, at that same
moment, the root of a long, sharp icicle melted
in the sun, losing its grip on the summit of the
cliff. Like a swift-flying knife it fell, gathering
force in flight. Into the fat throat of the pig it
sped, who said ' aoup,' and died. In the gash,
buried was that long, sharp icicle. Out of the
gash gushed boiling blood ; and, while the Signor
Sindaco looked, while the Signor Avvocato
Micci looked, while the Signor Dottore Pulobeni
looked, — there was no longer any icicle; — but
only a dead pig with a slit weasand, resembling
Aristide.

"And then? Well! Cannot la sua eccellenza
guess the rest? As for me, I am sleepy, — but,
sleepy ! "

So was I.

294

About Four Things Necessary

About the Four Things Necessary

AFTER sunset, on the southern shore of
Lago di Varano, (where we kept camp
some time, in forests, among mountains,
near several miles of four to twelve cubits depth
of salt water for our bodies' health,) I exclaimed,
"' Vesper adest: iuvenes, consurgite ! ' Here is
Toto bursting with stories ! "

We settled into comfortable situations round
our rhabdodos, and he said:

" When all, sir, has been said and done, it
remains not more than sufficiently difficult to
gain paradise. Four things are necessary. First,
you must have plenary absolution-in-the-article-
of-death, with a release from all canonical cen-
sures and excommunications. This depends
upon yourself. Secondly, you must have a strong
will. Thirdly, you must have a firm determina-
tion to allow no one to play the fool with you.
Fourthly, you must have an opportunity. And,
for these three last, you may depend upon your
patron, supposing that you are timid and dis-
trustful of yourself. It is true that a life of virtue
and good deeds will help you along the road ;
also, that wealth and riches will carry you over

295

About the Four

tlir »(>iit;l) i)lficc3, and cause La Sua Santitl,
S;if(ij<if:l,i(<, U> \>c ready with His Keys: but, for
llif i/r-tliiif^ llirmij;h the ^atc, and for the making
(_j(km| i,\ yoiii claiin to citizenship in the Regno
<li Dio, you will rc(|uire the Four Things of which
I have Rpolccn ; and, having these, you may snap
\' 'III liii{^;nr.s .il I In' rest.

" Now Ihnc was the case of Lazzaro, the men-
dh .ml What that poor liltli; thing suffered dur-
ing; 111 . lite. !•; Known to I'ache ICtcrno alone: not
to inc. Hill, liom the ti[) of his toes, to the skin
ol \w; 'ilaill wluMc no hair ever grew, he was one
vusi ill liiM!'. fostrr, white .\n(\ green as a putrid
t h(-(",c of sheep's nulk, aiul the skin all falling off
in <Ii\- atul dusty llakcs. Yet he was resigned to
111.- Will ol I'.hlie l''terno. and he bore his dolour
palieniK , loi lie knew tl\at, so, he would gain
nuu 1» luetit, ,\\u\ shorten his term of purgatory.

" One nuMiuni;. the Grov Angel chanced to be
K>v>kn\}; lhu>ui;li his kalondar; and he found,
there, lh.it the life of Lazzaro was to be ended at
o»\c hour rtfVcr the Ave Maria. So his highness
^AW the usual .idvicc to Lazzarello. who was the
aujirl ^v»;u\h,*a of this n\cndicant : and. at the first
hour v>f the lught, l-,irj:aix^llo took the soul of
\ ^?5Ai\> iu his Arms, and carried him right up to
the j:^Atc of pAradise ; for he needed none of the
t^tr tv> dcAnsc him. having been purified by a
mv>\r pAintuI pui-gAtory dovnt in the world. And.
tn the poroh V.r laid doxm La::::JTo'5 s^oul, bless-
ing hr.n ^. . '. die sign of our s^varioa; at

Things Necessary

which sign the mendicant had his health restored,
becoming young, and supple, and smooth, and
beautiful as I who speak of him.

" Lazzarello said this to be all that he could
do for the present. Lazzaro must now knock at
the gate with his proper hand, explain himself to
La Sua Santita, Sampietro, and pass through into
paradise. There, he would find his angel-guar-
dian with his halo, waiting for him near the Duomo,
to present him to the Padre Eterno on His Great
White Throne. And so the angel left him.

" This mendicant was an humble, timid man.
In the world, everyone had kicked him here, or
kicked him there. None had ever treated him
with courtesy. ' Aha, you stinking toad, get out
of my way,' was the only ' Good-day ' to which
his ears had been accustomed. His spirit was
broken. He had lost the habit of asserting his
rights. And his only wish was, to be allowed to
crawl away, that he might hide in cellars or in
caves. Therefore, when he considered his posi-
tion there, right at the very gate of paradise it-
self, he had many tremors in case the gods should
look upon his presence as presumption; and, as
for knocking boldly, and speaking to La Sua
Santita, Sampietro, face to face, on equal terms,
— why, he blushed purple at the bare notion of
taking such a liberty.

" There lay that poor little thing, shivering
with unnecessary modesty. He hardly dared to
breathe, lest he should disturb the bright and

297

About the Four

shining personages who already had achieved
their joy.

" After waiting many hours, his angel-guardian
came back to the gate, to see whether, by some
chance, Lazzaro had met with any accident : for
it was a thing unheard of that a man who had
won his right to everlasting bliss, should hesitate,
of his own will, to grasp the same, placed within
reach.

" He found the mendicant shaking with shy
fear. And he said to him that he must pluck up
courage, and remember that he was just as good
as any other man, and bushels better than some,
on which account he had only to knock, and the
gate would be opened, according to the evangel.

" Also, the angel said, supposing it to be one
of Sampietro's evil days, when, perhaps, La Sua
Santita might happen to show the rough side of
His tongue, or might be inclined to argue, Laz-
zaro would simply have to be firm, and to insist
upon a proper reception ; for, in these affairs, some
decision, some determination were required, ac-
cording to Sanluca, Physician, Painter, Evangel-
ist, and Chancellor of Madonna Mary, who had
written word that we must take much trouble
to enter into the Regno di Dio. Therefore, Laz-
zarello advised the mendicant that he should lay
aside all that humility which, in the world, had
pleased the Padre Etcrno, and that he should
comport himself as one who comes into his just
inheritance.

298

Things Necessary

" Lazzaro made an effort. He raised his hand
to knock. But he let it fall again, for his modesty-
was purely terrible. He dared, and did not
dare. He dared again, and again he did not
dare. At last, he gave a tiny tap, — just the tini-
est, tiniest tap : and he sank down, hiding his
blushes in his knees.

" Sampietro opened the gate of pearl, a little
way. All that He could see was a small cringing
heap of man beside the steps ; and, being as short
of temper as of breath, Sampietro shouted to know
what might be his name and business there?

" With fear, Lazzaro's throat grew hard. His
lips trembled, and his tongue refused to wag.
Not a sound could he utter; such was the gross
humility of him. Sampietro gave a scornful
snort, and He shut the gate again.

"After a day or two, Lazzaro found another
sprig of courage, and he knocked once more, per-
haps not quite so timidly. Sampietro was uncer-
tain whether it were a knock, or just the wind.
He thought He need not trouble to go down. He
went and peeped through the little window slant-
ing sideways in the tower. There lay Lazzaro,
prostrate, shy ; and Sampietro called to him that,
if he wished to enter, he must give a decent
knock, or else he must take his chance, and wait
till the gate should be opened for some more
manly soul. At His age, Sampietro said, He could
not be expected to keep on running up and down
stairs continually, on behalf of a person evidently

299

About the Four

unable to make up his mind. So Lazzaro
kneeled at the gate of paradise during two
months, listening to the musick of the angels,
and to the happy voices of the gods : but, never
once in all that time, did any other soul seek to
enter; and from this, sir, you may be pleased to
learn that it is not altogether of the easiest
to gain one of those plenary indulgences which
are sprinkled over the prayer-book.

" But, at last, the very high and very illustrious
Lord Baron Duria perished, of a forester's disease,
at his castle of Duria; and his angel-guardian
brought the soul of him up to the gate of para-
dise, with pomp and dignity ; for he was rich and
grand as the sun, and many masses had been said
for him during his sickness and agony, as well as
after his demise. Sampietro had heard those
masses, all sung by the singers of the opera; and
He had smelled of the incense with pleasure, —
pure gum olibanum at fifty lire the pound, ex-
pense being no object; — and He said to Himself
that something having the nature of a reception
was due, most assuredly, to this very high and
very illustrious Lord Baron Duria. Therefore
La Sua Santita sent for Santignazio of Loyola
and required him to set some of his novices to
work at doing what the circumstances demanded,
— Jesuits being the arbiters of elegance, as well
as of everything else. — And these draped the
gate of pearl with magenta damask, very gor-
geous, and with festoons of lace and muslin cur-

300

Things Necessary

tains, blue, and white, and yellow; and having
strewed the floor with bay and box to hide their
snuff and other things, they suspended from the
ceiling of the archway, cut-glass chandeliers blaz-
ing with many hundred tapers of the finest bees-
wax, till one would almost have said that para-
dise resembled a May Meeting at Gesu in
Rome.

" When the Lord Baron was arriving, Sam-
pietro chaunted, ' Lift up your heads, O ye gates,
and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors, to let
the very high and very illustrious Lord Baron
Duria come in. Enter, O very magnificent and
very sympathetick Lord Baron, — your lordship's
servant am I, and I beseech your lordship to
look on me with favour! — What an honour! —
What condescension ! — Does your lordship ad-
mire the decorations? — Ah, so good of your
lordship to praise our humble efforts! — We shall
always remember this day! — And your lord-
ship's mansion has been prepared ! Yes ! — And
we trust that your lordship will be consoled for
the loss of your lordship's castle of Duria ! Yes !
— And if there is any improvement which your
lordship might suggest, or any little comforts
which your lordship might require, they shall
be attended to — oh, yes, they shall have our
prompt attention.'

" And, while Sampietro was bowing and scrap-
ing and abasing Himself before the rich baron,
and the rich baron nodding to Sampietro, the

301

About Four Things Necessary

angel-guardian of Lazzaro beckoned, through the
open gateway, giving him such a sort of look
that courage and determination fired him, and he
arose, and walked boldly into the garden of
paradise, snapping his fingers at the rest."

302

About Preface of Fra Cherubino

xxj

About the Preface of Fra Cherubino

" ^ ■ AHEN, there was the case of the
I brigands.

JL " They were called Giacomuzzo Di-

monti, who was nicknamed Lo Scojattolo, be-
cause he was nimble in his movements and a
good climber, and Giuseppe Giovannino, who
was nicknamed La Lodola, because he was
always rubbing his hands and whistling. They
were rufifians of the most sinful kind, who did
murthers, rapes, and robberies, all their liv^es,
among the hills above Lanuvium.

" At last, they added sacrilege to their long
list of sins, sacrilege committed on the conse-
crated person of a poor Little Brother, called
Fra Cherubino, who, having been on a long day's
round of the country, begging for his convent
in the Pontine Marshes, was jogging along the
Appian Way at evening, with his ass well-laden
with eggs, and oil, and vegetables, and a bag of
money for the poor hanging from his girdle.
When he came to the Hill of the Two Towers,
those brigands stopped him to ask a blessing;
and, as he lifted up his holy hands, Lo Scojattolo

About the Preface

caught them, and dragged him from his saddle,
while La Lodola cut the bag of money from his
waist. Then they made him promise that he
would tell no man what they had done; and,
having battered him until he swooned, they ran
away with the money and the eggs and the oil
and the vegetables and the ass.

•' When Fra Cherubino had regained his senses,
he tottered into the town all sad; but, being
mindful of his promise, he said no word about the
sacrilecre. He wanted leisure in which to con-
sider the situation well and purely. The townsfolk
noticed the bruises of him, and his pallor, and his
blood ; and, in the wine-shops, after Ave Maria,
they meditated about the person, or persons, un-
known, who had been persuaded by the devil to
incur the Greater Excommunication, by raising
hands against a holy friar.

"The next day was the festa of Sangiuliano of
Albano, — a wild (discolo) boy resembling me,
sir, and of whom I dare not tell you, until you
give an order, because of the reverence which
is due to Vittorio and Otone and Ercole, and
Desiderio and Ilario, and my brother Guido, —
and Fra Cherubino was to sing mass, coram
pontifice, in the Duomo. People came from
near and far to hear that friar sing; for, not only
had the Padre Eterno deigned to grant to him
the voice of a mighty seraph, but his angel-
guardian, also, had taught him the bel canto;
so that he made all the marvellous sound in the

304

of Fra Cherubino

throat of him, and turned it into words with his
lips, and his teeth, and the tip of his tongue,
flinging pure clear notes into the air, — notes
shaped labialiter, according to the rule, into
syllables so distinct, so clean-cut, that every
single letter was mellifluously plain and audible,
except in the Secreta, which not even the priest
who celebrates may hear, but only Domeniddio
and His angels. You will know, sir, what an
admirable voice this was, if you will consider
how many priests cannot be heard distinctly*
even when they sing with the high voice. This
is because their passages are clogged with snuff,
and other dirt, and are unable to make fine
sounds: also, because of their absurd attempts
to shape sound into words with their noses
and the dingle-dangles over the roots of their
tongues, instead of using the machinery ordered
in the book. And, when they sing with the low
voice, you hear nothing but a mutter and a buzz,
and sometimes not a single sound of any species.

" Ah, well, Fra Cherubino was different; and
all the world flocked from near and far, to have
the pleasure of listening to his seraphic voice.

"The mass began, continued; and, presently,
there was Fra Cherubino singing, — oh, so clear
and slow, — the antick musick of the Preface of
Sangiuliano's festa. One — by — one, the mel-
low syllables — thrilled — and — melted — in the
air. It was a long, but not too long. Preface;
and Fra Cherubino sang it after this manner: —

20 305

About the Preface

// is very meet right and our bounden duty :
That we should at all times and in all places
give thanks unto Thee :

O Signore : Santissimo Padre : Iddio Omiipo-
tente ed Eterno :

And mo7'e especially when we admire Thy mar-
vels in the person of Sangiidiano of Albano, whose
solemnity we commemorate as on this day:
Nevertheless :

Evil men have robbed me Thy Little Brother :
Of my ass and of her saddle :
Of my eggs and of my oil a7id of my vegetables :
And of all the money which I had begged for
Thy poor children :
But:

To no man have I declared the thing :
Save unto Thee :
Only :

O Domeniddio Padre Omiipotente :
Who pitiest the needy and the poor :
And Who knoivest all things :
And therefore :
With angels and archajtgels :
And with all the company of heaven :
We laud and magnify Thy Glorious Name :
Evermore :
Praising Thee :
And saying :

Sancttis : Sanctus : Sanctus

"While this astounding piece of news was
coming from the Hps of their beloved fraticello,

306

of Fra Cherubino

each man in the Duomo turned, and looked
upon his neighbour with wide eyes, full of mean-
ing. And, when thanks had been offered at the
Ite missa est, they poured out into the piazza,
very furious, where the Signor Sindaco, stand-
ing on the steps of the fountain, shouted to the
crowd that, now, the time was come in which
Lo Scojattolo and La Lodola must be prevented
from committing any more crimes ; it being evi-
dent that ruffians, who scrupled not to rob a
holy friar, were a disgrace to the neighbour-
hood, and ought to be hunted to extermination
just like wolves.

" So, all the men of the town, as well as of all
the towns near by, took knives, and guns, and
sickles, and scythes, and scoured the country
till they had caught those brigands and lodged
them in the gaol of Rome, where, in course of
time, they were brought before the judges, a list
of their crimes was read to them, and they were
condemned to decollation on the morrow's morn.

" At night, in the gaol, Fra Cherubino came to
them. He showed them that they must repent
of all their sins, and pray for mercy to Domen-
iddio, offering to Him their deaths in expiation.

" At dawn, he heard their last confessions ;
and, on the scaffold, he imparted plenary abso-
lution-in-the-article-of-death, with release from all
canonical censures and excommunications, to the
utmost of his power.

*' Lo Scojattolo was the first to face his doom.

307

About the Preface

He kneeled upon his knees, and fixed his eyes
upon the crucifix which Fra Cherubino held
before him, saying Miserere mei Deus, until the
carnefex struck ofT his head at the verse Averte
Faciem Tuam a peccatis ineis : et ojnnes iniquitates
meas dele: and then, before his angel-guardian
had time to seize his soul, he fled straight up
to paradise, not even invoking San Durmaele
Arcangiolo to show the way; and there he bat-
tered on the gate with all his strength, being
fearful lest Sathanas, whom he had served all
his life long, should catch and carry him to the
Brown Kingdom.

" So tremendous was the noise which he
created there, that Sampietro hastened to un-
latch the gate, demanding who dared to raise
so very godless a clamour. To Whom the bri-
gand answered, that he was called Giacomuzzo
Dimonti, nicknamed Lo Scojattolo, by profes-
sion brigand, robber, fornicator, adulterer, and
murtherer, that he had left the world in a state
of grace, having obtained plenary absolution-in-
the-article-of-death, with release from all canoni-
cal censures and excommunications, which death
he had offered to the Padre Eterno in expiation
of his crimes, and had suffered, the previous
moment, on the scaffold of the Campo di Fiori
down in Rome. Wherefore, he wished to enter
paradise without delay, lest some disgrazia
should come upon him.

"But Sampietro met him with much anger;

308

of Fra Cherubino

and He blocked the gateway, saying, that Lo
Scojattolo was making a huge error — error
amounting to heresy — if he supposed paradise
to be a home for ruffians such as he had just
described himself to have been. Heaven was
inhabited by pure, and virtuous, and holy per-
sons; and no unclean thing should enter there,
as long as He held the Power of the Keys.

" Lo Scojattolo shouted, that he was not un-
clean, but clean ; and, being in a rage, he waved
his certificate of absolution-in-the-article-of-death,
to which the pounce still clung, right in the face
of Sampietro.

" La Sua Santita said that even persons who
had lived respectably down there were none the
worse for a taste of purgatorial fire ; and for a
bloody brigand to imagine that he could escape
with a whole skin, was just a piece of bare-faced
impertinence : and that was all about it. Purga-
tory was the place for the likes of him, that he
might know something of the suffering which,
in his life-time, he had put upon other people.
What could he know of suft"ering, Sampietro
asked? What pain had he borne down there
which might pass for an equivalent to purgatory?

"Hardened criminal as he was, Lo Scojattolo
flinched before the anger of the Santo Padre.
He wished that he had spoken civilly at first.
How was he to answer this angry pontiff now,
— pontiff who kept the Keys? He stood on one
foot and rubbed the instep of the other up and

3^9

About Preface of Fra Cherubino

down the calf of the firm leg in a manner of hesi-
tation. He stammered, that his wife —

" Sampietro caught him by the sleeve, and
interrupted, asking whether he meant to say that
he had been a married man?

"Lo Scojattolo answered, yes, during twenty
years ; having married a widow of four and
twenty, in order to deprive himself of the knives
of her brothers, on the day when he had reached
his eighteenth year.

" Then, Sampietro said, ' Ah, well, well ; We
have been a married man Ourself; and he took
the brigand by the hand, and led him sweetly
into paradise, saying that that was quite enough,
the Padre Eterno being too just, too merciful, to
make a man taste purgatory more than once, no
matter how black his record may have been.

" So, Lo Scojattolo was numbered among the
immortal gods ; and Sampietro shut the gate."

310

About Insistence of Sangiuseppe

XXIJ

About the Insistence of Sangiuseppe

" "^L "y OW while these things were being
I ^^^j done on the threshold of paradise,

A^ ^ Giuseppe Giovannino, nicknamed
La Lodola, that other brigand of whom I spoke,
mounted the scaffold of the Campo di Fiori ;
and, kneeling on his knees, he fixed his eyes
upon the crucifix which Fra Cherubino held be-
fore him, murmuring, Gesii, Maria, Giuseppe;
Gesit, Maria, Giuseppe, until the carnefex struck
ofT his head ; and then his soul fled up to the gate
of pearl, as swiftly as the soul of his comrade
had flown before him, arriving just in time to
hear the close of the argument between Lo
Scojattolo and Sampietro, and to have the gate
slammed in his face.

" He hammered with all his might upon the
knocker, raising echoes from all quarters of the
sky ; and Sampietro, who had intended to stroll a
httle way with Lo Scojattolo that He might hear
the latest gossip of the City, was obliged to offer
His excuses, and to hurry to the gate. As soon
as He had opened it a little way, La Lodola at-
tempted to push through : but Sampietro hit

311

About the Insistence

him over the knuckles with the Keys, bidding
him to behave himself, and to tell his name
and business there.

" La Lodola answered, that he was called
Giuseppe Giovannino, the other being a nick-
name only; by profession brigand, robber, forni-
cator, adulterer, and murtherer; that he claimed
admission as his right, seeing that he had left
the world in a state of grace, being armed
with plenary absolution-in-the-article-of-death, and
released from all canonical censures and excom-
munications.

" But one brigand was sufficient for Sampietro.
He could not see His way to admit a second ;
and He firmly stated that La Lodola must make
up his mind to go to purgatory without any
more nonsensical ado. La Sua Santita made
as though He were about to close the gate and
terminate the interview; but La Lodola caught
hold of it, daring Sampietro to crush his fingers,
and to stain with blood the sacred precincts,
and demanding why Lo Scojattolo should have
been allowed to enter paradise without a course
of purgatory, while he, the comrade of the said
Scojattolo, and no jot a viler villain, should be
sent to purgatory, paradise being denied. It was
not fair. It was not what he had expected of
Sampietro. What was sauce for the gander was
sauce, also, for the goose ; and so on, and so on.

" Sampietro answered, that the cases were by
no means so similar as La Lodola pretended ;

312

of Sangiuseppe

his comrade having already undergone a course
of purgatory in his hfe-time, in that he had been
a married man.

" At this La Lodola eagerly spread his hands,
saying, that if that were all, he had as much right
to paradise as Lo Scojattolo, and even more;
because he had made a practice of being married
many times. It was his constant habit, at all
times and in all places, in fact, he said.

" Sampietro was utterly disgusted. He de-
clared this admission to be a fatal and a final
one. Purgatory, He said, was indispensable to
La Lodola, seeing that there was a strict rule
which prevented either idiots or imbeciles from
entering paradise. Sampietro banged the gate,
and returned to Lo Scojattolo in the garden ;
while La Lodola was left alone, outside.

" But this brigand was not a man who takes
rebuffs with patience. Having freed his mind,
he stamped upon the ground, and asked himself
who was this Sampietro, after all, that He should
treat him so? In a moment, something about
the past life of La Sua Santiti flashed across
his mind. He gave a cunning chuckle; and,
kneeling on his knees, he put his lips to the
key-hole of the gate ; and, with high voice, he
screamed, ' Cockadoodlcdoo! Cockadoodlcdoo ! '

"Oh, sir; but what a shock for Sampietro!
The heart of Him turned to boiling water. He
dropped the arm of Lo Scojattolo there, on the
very steps of the duomo, strewing flat the aco-

3^3

About the Insistence

lyths who held His orfreys, and those who waved
the fans of peacock's tails by His side ; and He
fled back to the gate, cursing, fumbling with the
keys. He loosed the latch. He flung the gate
wide open ; and He dragged that naughty Lodola
inside, begging him, beseeching him not to make
those horrid noises, — noises which would serve
no purpose, — noises which would open up old
wounds, reminding the high gods of matters
painful to remember, better buried in oblivion.

" La Lodola answered, that it was not his wish to
make himself a nuisance to Sampietro ; far from
it. He simply wanted to get inside the gate of
pearl : and, having done that, he remained the
obedient humble servant of La Sua Santita.

" Well ! Of course Sampietro could not turn
him out again. No, But He declined the re-
sponsibility of presenting La Lodola to the Padre
Eterno, things being as they were. Wherefore a
patron must be found ; and He suggested that
the brigand would do well to review his past life,
as though in preparation for a general confession,
that he might discover whether, by some chance,
he had a claim upon the good offices of some or
any of the gods already in glory.

" La Lodola declared, that, on that score, there
need be no difficulty. At his baptism, his god-
father called him Giuseppe, placing him under
the protection of the divo who was Direttore
della Sacra Famiglia ; and, all through his life, it-
had been his constant habit to recite Gloria Patri

314

of Sangiuseppe

three times every morning and every night, in
honour of Sangiuseppe. Also, in brawls, he had
always invoked Sangiuseppe; and, when he
wished to curse or to swear, he had cried com-
monly on Sangiuseppe, instead of on such antick
gods as the Lord Dionusos, or the Lord Herakles,
as did the other brigands, his companions.
Wherefore, it was the duty of Sangiuseppe to
make him some return for all these attentions,
by taking interest in his welfare now.

" Sampietro was glad to have the matter taken
off His hands so easily. He dispatched two aco-
lyths with waxen torches to bear His compli-
ments to Sangiuseppe, requesting him to be so
kind as to come down to the gate for a minute,
on urgent official business : and, when Sangiu-
seppe appeared, Sampietro said a few words, in-
troducing La Lodola, and explaining the favour
which he wished to ask.

" Sangiuseppe looked sternly at the brigand,
and, in a searching manner, examined his con-
science concerning his past life. Horrible were
the crimes confessed by La Lodola, grim as ada-
mant the face of Sangiuseppe ; until the brigand
alleged that he had recited that Gloria Patri three
times every night and every morning. Sangiu-
seppe referred to the list of his regular clients ;
and finding there the name, Giuseppe Giovan-
nino, according to the statement of the brigand,
he looked more kindly on him, and said that he
would see what could be done. Also, Sangiu-

315

About the Insistence

seppe patted him on the shoulder, as a father pats
a naughty child who, after confession, has been
forgiven ; and said that he must cheer up, for he
would see him through his difficulty. And, be-
cause the sins of La Lodola had been so terrible,
Sangiuseppe thought that it might be as well to
begin with an application to II Santissimo Him-
self, and not to trouble about asking favours of
other gods ; for these were peculiar people, who
had, each, his own friends to attend to, and who
might not care to undertake the afi'airs of a stran-
ger in whom they had no interest. So Sangiu-
seppe wrote a petition in these words :

" The petitioner, Giuseppe Giovannijio, called
La Lodola, of the age of thirty-seven years, formerly
living in the cave on the Hill of the Two Towers
above the Po7itine Marshes, by profession brigand,
robber, fornicator, adulterer, and mnrtherer, has
suffered decollation on the scaffold of the Campo di
Fieri in Rome, for the crime of sacrilege. He pe-
titions for confirmation of his citizenship of this
Kingdom : which citizenship he claims to have
merited by full contrition, exact confession, and
plenary absolution-in-tJie-article-of-dcath, tvith re-
lease from all canonical censures and excommuni-
cations. The case is recommended by Jiis patron
Sangiuseppe,

Direttorc delta Sacra Famiglia,

and the rest.

" Then, Sangiuseppe spoke a word to San

Suriele Arcangiolo, the Prince of the Presence,

316

of Sangiuseppe

who guards the door, and gained admission to
the Duomo. There, he and his client kneeled
down before II Santissimo, first making three
genuflexions on both knees, according to the
rule ; and the brigand presented his petition.

"But II Santissimo required to know what His
Blessed Mother had said ; and, when Sangiu-
seppe answered, that La Sua Maesta had not been
consulted, Santissimo returned the petition to La
Lodola, saying, that she was Rifugio dej peccatorj,
having full authority to deal with the affair.

" Sangiuseppe made the brigand rise, making
three genuflexions on both knees as before ; and
retired, a little to the right, always facing II San-
tissimo, until they reached the throne of La Madre
di Dio, where La Lodola made his best bow, and
presented his petition.

" La Santissima Vergine read it with care,
inquiring whether the petitioner had worn the
brown scapular. When she heard that he had
not done this, she was much shocked ; and she
asked whether he had invoked her aid during his
life.

" With shame, La Lodola replied, that he had
never even given her a thought, and had never
used her name except when he was surprised.
And he began to feel very sorry for himself; and
he wanted to weep ; for he was certain that his
chances were becoming very small indeed. Yet,
though it seemed that fire was likely to be his
portion, something — of I know not what —

317

About the Insistence

forced him to make a clean breast of all his wick-
edness, when La Santissima Vergine put her gen-
tle questions to him.

" She became very sad. She looked at her
Son with eyes imploring. Seeing His Face to
be terrible and full of doom, the tears ran down
her cheeks. She nodded her head back, — oh,
but in hopeless pity for the miserable brigand,
who, in his life, had never given her a thought,
and whom, now, she must refuse to aid.

" La Lodola checked his dolour with a sigh.
He would not have that lovely Lady grieve on
his account. He bowed low before her; and,
retiring always backward, he passed out of the
Duomo with his patron, Sangiuseppe.

" In the court, the two paced backward and
forward for a quarter of an hour; and, because
his patron did not speak, but knit his brows, and
muttered in his beard, the brigand said that,
now, he saw that he had been rash, — he had no
chance, — it was his evil day, — his luck had
deserted him ; and, while he would always re-
member the kindness of Sangiuseppe, he felt it
to be useless, unbecoming, to give him any more
trouble ; and, so, he simply begged a blessing
before he withdrew to another place, — place for
which his crimes had fitted him.

" But Sangiuseppe checked him there, saying
that this was all nonsense. Did La Lodola sup-
pose that the power of the Direttore della Sacra
Famiglia went no further? Did La Lodola

318

of Sangiuseppe

imagine for a moment that the Patron-Of-All-
Those-Who-Confidently-Call-Upon-Him would
sufifer a single one of his clients to perish ever-
lastingly? Not by any means ! La Lodola had
mistaken his god, if that were his idea ! Were
there no other August Personages besides Those
Whom they had just left? Indeed there were!
Application must be made to These, before that
hope should be laid down. Paradise was the land
of hope ; and, having gained a foothold there, La
Lodola must struggle, must persevere, till he had
made that foothold sure. With these words, and
with others like them, Sangiuseppe cheered the
brigand, while he sent one of the seven angels to
find out whether the Santo Spirito received at
that late hour.

" Presently, the angel returned, saying, that
audiences were over for the day; and the Santo
Spirito was gone into His Oratory to say the
Little Office of Beata Maria Vergine, at which
devotion He might not be disturbed.

" Sangiuseppe made a gesture of impatience.
He said that it was purely silly to beat about
the bush like this. Here was an affair of vital
interest, which should be settled out of hand.
Why not do the proper thing, and go straight
to the Fountain-Head of Justice, without any
more dilly-dallying? And, seizing La Lodola
by his arm, he whisked him right into the Pres-
ence, making him lie prostrate before the Padre
Eterno on His Great White Throne.

319

About the Insistence

" Sangiuseppe took the petition. To La Su-
prema Maesta e Grandezza, he presented it,
begging favourable consideration.

" The Padre Eterno deigned to read the scroll.

" At the end, He returned it to the patron of
La Lodola saying that He did not know whether
Sangiuseppe's hardihood, or his lack of the sense
of decency, gave Him most amazement. Did
Sangiuseppe expect that the presence of a per-
son of this description — brigand, robber, forni-
cator, adulterer, murtherer, sacrilegist, on his own
showing — would be tolerated for an instant?
He was astounded at Sangiuseppe ! And the
answer to that petition would be —

" But, here, Sangiuseppe interrupted, declaring
that, notwithstanding all that had been said, cer-
tain facts remained. This brigand had received,
in baptism, his name, Giuseppe, and had invoked
him at least twice daily during his life in the
world. Also, Sangiuseppe begged the Padre
Eterno to remember that he who spoke had always
enjoyed the reputation of being a god worthy of
trust ; and he had not the intention of forfeiting the
said reputation. La Lodola was his client ; and,
never yet, had he forsaken any one who placed
confidence in him. He must ask that the peti-
tion of his client be granted. He must ask it as
a personal favour. It was seldom that he asked
a personal favour. He was not one of those
tiresome fashionable little gods who were always
buzzing about, making themselves necessary with

320

of Sangiuseppe

lace pictures and periapts ; but just a plain hon-
est god out of the Evangel, where any one might
read of him as a just man. That testimonial to
his character was decisive, being contained in
the Canonical Scripture, whose writers wrote
nothing but the Words of La Suprema Maesta.
Therefore, as a just man, he asked only for jus-
tice. He asked it as a personal favour. And
when, — being a just man all the time, — he did
think proper to ask a personal favour, he ex-
pected to have that favour granted. In conclu-
sion, all that he could say was this, that if
that favour were not granted — well, he would
simply leave. And — what was more — • as Diret-
tore della Sacra Famiglia, he would remove his
Spouse, and her Divine Child also, with him,
and take up his abode in the Santa Casa di
Loreto, a quite commodious residence, which
pious persons had decorated with gold and pre-
cious marbles in a manner leaving nothing to be
desired. And that was that !

" Then there was a pregnant silence.

" In the stillness of the hush, one of the little
blue cherubini of the aureola whimpered, ' Oh !
But where should we be then ! '

" The Padre Eterno smiled. Whispers rustled
through the ranks of the company of heaven.
San Sandalfone Serafino paused in placing laurel
crowns upon the Head of his Creator. The seven
angels blew a fanfare on their trumpets command-
ing silence.

21 321

About Insistence of Sangiuseppe

"Then the air vibrated with the distant rolling
thunder of the Voice of the Padre Eterno, who
deigned to say, ' We GRANT TO GIUSEPPE Gio-

VANNINO, CALLED LA LODOLA, CITIZENSHIP OF

Our Kingdom, through the powerful inter-
cession OF Sangiuseppe, according to the
Evangel of San Matteo, where it is written

THAT the kingdom OF HEAVEN SHALL SUFFER
violence, and THAT THE VIOLENT MAN SHALL
TAKE IT BY FORCE. BENEDICAT VOS OmNIPOTENS

Deus liiiSii^ Pater liH^iJi et Filius i£iiSii£i
ET Spiritus Sanctus.' "

322

About a Vegetable Purgatory

XXIIJ
About a Vegetable Purgatory

BEHOLD a malefactor! "
Toto came through the bushes behind
me, and pointed a rigid finger at
Desiderio, beautifully sleeping by a thicket cov-
ered with yellow cystus, across the little sunlit
glade.

It was in the Bosco dell' Ombra, near by Monte
Nicola ; and I was painting Desiderio in the
character of Love the Dreamer, For this purpose
I had acquired him, seeing him to be a veritable
reincarnation of the Son of Kuthereia, with his
yellow hair, and yellow eyes, and his white smooth
skin, glossy from head to foot with the finest
yellow silken down, which made him shine in the
sun as though he were chiselled in pale gold. He
never wished to speak ; he fed as delicately as a
little bird ; was always drowsy, and generally
asleep ; lived his own happy little life ; and, at
fourteen, showed a slim round shape like the
David of Donatello, crowned with short and
waving curls.

Under a smaragdine canopy of beeches, whose
trunks, massive and fantastick, were sheathed in

323

About a Vegetable Purgatory

iron grey mail, the afternoon was warm. Every-
one still slept: and I was painting Himeros, yel-
low, on yellow and green. Then came Toto ; who
glowered upon my unconscious model, and pro-
claimed him to be a malefactor.

" What has he done now? " I asked.

" But, sir, do you not see his garland? "

Desiderio slept in peace, by the thicket cov-
ered with yellow cystus, diademed with daffy-
dillies.

" Oh, yes ; I see his garland. I told him to
get a garland. Don't you see that it helps the
picture, Toto mio? "

"Yes, sir; of course a garland must be worn.
And, for Divinamore, a garland of white roses.
But dafify-dillies — daffy-dillies ! By the goose !
Nothing, but inbred sin, could have made the
creature choose dafify-dillies out of all the many
million flowers, in all these miles of forest. La
sua eccellenza never ordered dafify-dillies. That
I know. It would be too discourteous. And
Desiderio is a malefactor, as I have said."

" But why not dafify-dillies? "

" Sir, it is plain, after that question, that, if I
tell you truth, I shall not please you ; and, if I
please you, I shall not tell you truth."

" Then, by all means, tell the truth, and don't
omit a single word."

" Very well, sir. You shall hear a voice
ignorant of lies. Now, in the whole body of you,
there is not more than one pinch of cruelty. Also,

324

About a Vegetable Purgatory

you punish us when we are cruel or unkind, even
to unimportant things, per esempio, puppies.
And Desiderio is a malefactor ; for he has taken
advantage of your permission to crown himself
with flowers, in that he has most rudely, most
nefariously, chosen dafify-dillies. Oh, it is a very
serious matter to pluck dafify-dillies ; and San-
tacore died of that same, who, for her sin, is
doomed to spend one half of the year in paradise ;
the other half in purgatory. But, at least,
Desiderio is unkind.

" Ah, sir, — if you knew all — "

I laid down my palette, and lighted a cigarette,
having asserted that I was waiting, and yearning,
and burning, to know all, from the very beginning.
He pillowed his head in his arms; his glance
soared to the jewels of verdure overhead, dilating
as he chaunted of mysteries unseen.
• " Sir, you shall know that the Padre Eterno
prepares for every man a particular purgatory
suited to his particular sin. Yes. That is where
He is so kind ; for you may trust Him not to play
you the ungenerous trick of treating you as He
treats the others. No. You have your sins;
and He will fit them with a solely proper cure. I
have mine ; and He will deal with me as I deserve.
No more, no less. Well then : some will have to
burn, and some to freeze ; and the lazy will be
chained immoveably; and busy-bodies will be
kept always on the jog; and the haughty will be
used as doorsteps; and the humble, clothed in

325

About a Vegetable Purgatory

gold and tails of peacocks, will have to sit on
shining thrones until they learn to carry them-
selves with dignity, — dignity of children of the
Re del Cielo, even as I am, — I, — Teodoro ! And
by these means, or by others which are not now
in my mouth, does the Padre Eterno clear us of
whatever stain of sin there may be in us, at the
time when Sant' Azraele Arcangiolo shall snip
the cord which binds our bodies to our souls ;
that He may make the said souls like those of the
gods, who will have to be our daily friends in
paradise.

" But now I am to tell you about persons who
have their purgatory in flowers, or in trees;
persons who, for some little sort of sin, are pent
in places from which they may not move, wear-
ing unusual shapes which not their lovers, nor
even their own mothers, recognise ; speechless,
yet hearing everything; helpless, yet seeing
everything; at the mercy of every beast, or of
the rude hand of Desiderio, rather-brutal-than-
not.

" Yes, sir, — daffy-dillies. You shall know that,
formerly, there lived a shepherd boy; and I
think him to have been of the Abruzzi,
though of that I am not certain : and, when he
reached the age of seventeen years, he found
himself to have a Vocation for the priesthood.
Whether it was a present, in return for the
musick of his flute, which he played while his
goats were sleeping in the shade, or whatever

326

About a Vegetable Purgatory

else, has not been told to me. But there was his
Vocation all the same. I am sure that Madon-
nina smiled on him, for he loved her dearly:
and, on a night when he was lying in the open,
just breathing little holy songs like this one, the
sky was dark and clear, perfumed with cyclamen ;
and Atiso kneeled, and made a vow, that he
would be her servant, always, whom he called
the Mother of the Maker of the stars. That
was his answer to her call.

" Now, sir, a Vocation is a very serious thing,
as I have often said to Niccolo my brother. It
makes a mighty difference in your behaviour to
yourself, as well as to your friends. If you have
no Vocation, well ; you can only do your best.
But, if you have it, then circumspect must be
your mortal passage. And Atiso was a failure.
For, in a year or two, he forgot his vow to
Madonnina; and then he allowed himself to
fall in love with a young girl of his parish who
was called the Signorina Sangarisa.

" Madonna grieved because Atiso had for-
gotten her. She looked out from her picture in
the church, where he came to pay his duty, with
such sadness, and such longing, that something
like a wave swept through his heart, and some-
thing like a shutter lifted from his eyes, so that
he scorned himself for being unfaithful to his
lady; and, in remorse, he ran away to the
woods, where he put himself to prayer and
penance, until he had forgotten the Sangarisa,

327

About a Vegetable Purgatory

and had made his peace with her who held his
vow. After he had been a priest for many years,
he was allowed to leave this life; and, for his
purgatory, he was changed into a pine-tree, tall
and slender, as he was at that time when he
belied his promise, head veiled in sad-colour,
drooping in regret.

" So he must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; silent, helpless, at the mercy of all
the world, because he showed more than enough
mercy to himself.

" Also, there was a boy called Chupariso, who,
on one of his evil days, slew a tame stag which
was the property of some convent of San Michele
Arcangiolo ; at which mischance, he worked him-
self into a fever; and presently he died. Of
course, he was very sorry, and he said so, frankly ;
because every respectable boy knows better than
to do wilful damage to the pets of holy persons :
but Chupariso showed such extravagance of sor-
row, that, for his purgatory, San Michele Arcan-
giolo obtained an Order, from the Padre Eterno,
to change him into a cypress-tree.

" So he must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; symbol of sorrow, silent, helpless, at the
mercy of all the world, because he wasted sorrow
upon a simple accident.

" Also, there was a boy called Zafiferano, who
loved a girl. And he was too impatient in his
love; and she was no less impatient than her
lover: and — well, then, — yes, sir.

328

About a Vegetable Purgatory

" So, when they died, the Padre Eterno very
kindly turned the girl into a yew-tree, and the
boy into a saffron-flower, who, all day long
must sit at the yew-tree's foot, apart,

" So they must remain, until the ultimate day
of judging; separate each from other, and yet
always near ; silent, helpless, at the mercy of all
the world, because of their impatience.

" Also, there was a boy called Adone, hand-
some to look at, and in deeds not refuting his
aspect. The mania of sport occupied his mind,
making him neglectful of his orisons to Madon-
nina. Often, she sent an angel to whisper in his
ear ; but this boy with yellow hair refused atten-
tion ; nor would he even give a moment to kiss
his fingers to her picture. All his time he spent
hunting in the forests, and doing mighty deeds,
brandishing a spear which had a short head of
steel. With swiftness equal to the winds, he car-
ried death to fighting lions, and slew wild boars ;
bearing their panting bodies to the charcoal-
burners, that these might admire his courage, and
his strength. But, one day, when he was at the
chase, from a dusky thicket, there rushed a huge
wild boar ; who, with his ruthless tusk, killed the
boy Adone : and when he died the Padre Eterno
changed him into the flower called anemone.

" So he must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; Adone, once the ardent hunter, now
helpless, at the mercy of all the world, raising
purple eyes to the pitiful sky, praying silent

329

About a Vegetable Purgatory-

prayers to complete the tale of those which he
neglected when he lived this life.

" Also, there was a boy called Giacinto, —
friend of San Michele Arcangiolo ; and he was
not beautiful only; but beautiful, and also noble.
All the same he had his little sins, such as you
would expect of anyone. Because he was the
friend of an archangel, the kakodaimons of the
Brown Kingdom hated him ; and they always
stood on tiptoe, looking for a chance of doing
him a mischief. One day, it happened that San
Michele was absent on his private business ; and
Giacinto was alone. If that he had been altogether
holy, he would have spent the time in making a
meditation, — meditation on the transcendent
splendour of his patron, per esempio ; — but he
was thoughtless, as all boys are, when they are not
exactly good, and not exactly bad : and he went
out by the brook-side to play at quoits, neither
spitting thrice, nor making horns, nor holding
both his thumbs, in defiance of sinister things,
being young enough to have no fear. And
Sathanas saw his chance. He called his slave,
the kakodaimon who blows that horrible wind
which the people of these regions call the Bora;
and, when Giacinto retired one pace, balancing
his quoit. His Wickedness made himself invisible,
and came and stood in front of him, at a distance
of thirteen cubits; and, when Giacinto, springing
forward, straightening upward, hurled his quoit,
the said kakodaimon snorted just one fierce cold

About a Vegetable Purgatory

gust, blowing back the heavy disc on to the fore-
head of the boy, from which he took a wound, so
deadly that he fell down there, and died.

" Then the said kakodaimon fled before San
Michele Arcangiolo, swooping from paradise ; who
mourned the death of his little friend, lying in his
blood upon the greensward, like some white
flower stained purple, the victim of a mower's
scythe.

" And the Great Prince took his scales of gold ;
and he weighed the soul of Giacinto then and
there ; for he hoped to find him ready for the
diadem of paradise. But, alas, Giacinto's little
sins weighed down the scale ; and the archangel
became aware that this was a matter of purga-
tory. So, pleading before the Padre Eterno,
obtaining the Order which he craved, he buried
the boy's body in a cool place, at the margin of
the brook; and he blessed the grave ^ with the
sign of our salvation : at which sign a tall, slim
plant uprose, with leaves of tender green, crowned
with a flower so rare and ravishing, that, when
one sees it, one prays to be made all nose : and,
in this martagon lily, having on its petals words
of woe, the archangel enclosed the soul of his
friend Giacinto.

" So he must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; Giacinto, once so brave of hand, so
shrill of voice, so clever of limb, now silent, help-
less, at the mercy of all the world, until to Divine
Justice he shall have atoned for his little sins.

331

About a Vegetable Purgatory

" Also, there was a maid called Dafne ; and
San Michele Arcangiolo wished her well, offering
to take her under his protection : but she was
difficult, and not-a-little silly.

"Soon she died; and, immediately, she saw
what she had missed ; — great was her grief.
And she was changed into a laurel, whose leaves
the Great Prince wears for a garland on his helm
— the victorious flower of his handiwork, which
he won when Dafne hardened her heart no more
against him.

" So she must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; silent, helpless, at the mercy of all the
world, because in life she preferred her own will,
and refused the friendship of the god with the
hair of gold.

" Also, there was a boy called Narchiso, an
object of admiration, with songs, among his
equals, and among his elders, and an object of
interest to all young maids. But, for these, he
had no liking; though some died for love of his
grace. He was the only son of his parents. His
sister was their only daughter. These two were
twins, as like as two little drops of dew ; and each
one loved the other, using all their love till none
was left unused. Therefore, Narchiso and his
sister ran away into a forest, similar to this forest.
They lived in peace, in those green solitudes ;
until the maiden died, and angels carried her
candid soul to paradise.

" Narchiso was alone, longing for his sister

332

About a Vegetable Purgatory

every day, sitting by the stillness of a water-
spring, bathed, as to his tender body, by the
yellow and purple petals of wall-flowers — wall-
flowers, which hold a soul, by name lone, of
whose history I am ignorant, knowing nothing
more than just the name.

" And, by-and-bye, when his streaming tears
had ceased to flow, and the blindness of his grief
had worn away, this boy Narchiso beheld the re-
flection of his image in the water. And, in look-
ing on the likeness of himself, he saw the likeness
of Candida, his dead sister; and, from that day
forward, he moved not from his station by the
water-spring, spending each hour of daylight in
contemplation of the gracious loveliness reflected
in the shadows of the pool ; until he lost his long-
ing for the maid in paradise, and loved, with all
his soul, the apparition of his image in the water.
And later, — for nothing in the world stands still,
not even Love, which must descend, when there
are no angel-wings to raise it high, — later, his
affection passed, from the mere reflection of his
beauty, to his veritable self

"Then, he had no speck of true love left;
because true love is never for one's self, but
always for another, — and, for choice, for one un-
worthy, whereby the opportunity for sacrifice
arises, whence merits may be won : — and, in the
end, when he was nothing but a mass of selfish-
ness, Narchiso pined away and died, and, for his
purgatory, he was imprisoned in a daffy-dilly.

333

About a Vegetable Purgatory

" So he must remain until the ultimate day of
judging; never near water where he might see
his image and so gain joy ; silent, helpless, at the
mercy of all the world, till all his selfishness is
purged away.

"True, sir? Oh, yes, — but, true! For you
commanded that I should never lie. And, indeed,
I have given you the sayings of Frat' Innocente-
of-the-Nine-Quires, — sayings which go very near
the path of truth. But, often enough, I, who
speak to you, have seen the faces, and the waving
arms, of lovely milk-white girls, looking at me
from oak-trees, and among the river-reeds. Also,
sir, — and not so long ago, — you, yourself, re-
cited histories concerning a noble lord of some
strange country, who made musick, so divinely,
on his chitarone, that wild beasts became like
gentle little kittens, and trees tore up their roots
to follow in his train, as virgin-lilies, in the can-
ticle, follow the Agnello di Dio whithersoever
He goeth. Yes, sir ; it is all as true as life, or
sunlight: and, if I believe that trees can walk, it
will not be too difficult for you to believe that
flowers must remain still, saying never a word,
moving never by the breadth of Arachne's Thread
from the place whereon they grow, by reason of
the souls whom they have to hold in purgatory.

" Poor dear flowers ! Think, sir, how that a
nightmare chains them, that they shall not leap
nor run ! Think of the torment which they
sufl"er in hearing wicked words, or foolish words,

334

About a Vegetable Purgatory

which they may not notice, being doomed to
silence ! By the goat ! Yes ! And, if one owes
courtesy to animals and persons, why not owe it
also to flowers? Yet they are trampled down or
torn to pieces ; but never by me, Teodoro, for I
will not be cruel to those persons who go in sad-
ness, being less strong, less free than I ; — at
least, not when I know them as they are. And I
do know those whose histories I have chaunted ;
therefore, knowing them, I must be kind. There
are plenty of other flowers, of whom I have not
learned that they are souls in purgatory. These
I may allow myself to pluck, and keep my con-
science clean ; seeing that one earns no blame for
what one does not refuse to know. But Desiderio
knows, — have I not made all the boys to know?
— and especially about Narchiso in the daffy-
dillies, seeing so many millions in this forest, day
after day. Yet he has not scrupled to tear up
dafify-dillies, twenty at the least, and to twist, of
them, a garland for his ruthless head,

" Wherefore, I have called Desiderio a malefac-
tor, whom presently I shall awaken ; and he will
take from me a whipping of the very finest for his
forgetfulness, and for his discourtesy; — that is to
say, supposing that la sua eccellenza still means
me to keep his boj'-s in order. Oh, sir, do
look at him! Oh, Madonna mia ! Sir, be
pleased to go and take a little stroll in the forest,
while I smack him ! "

335

About What is Due to Contrition

XXIIIJ

About What is Due to Contrition

AT Vasto d' Aimone. The end of an awe-
full afternoon.
The hot air throbbed in paralysis and
apprehension. In battalions, wild black-purple
clouds rolled up, massing in a mist saturated with
sulphurous red, with sombre grey.

I was standing by the window. I did not care
to move or speak. I felt the elements to be
marshalling for horrid war.

*' You know, sir, that you have not been mak-
ing me very easy;" Toto said. During four
months, he had been away from home ; and,
being bored, he was inclined to show contempt
at what he called "these strange places" through
which it was my will to go. I was visiting him
with my displeasure.

I answered with no word. I waited for the
outbreak of the storm. I could hear wind swish-
ing through the olives, whipping branches into
smoke.

" Eccellenza ! Pardon ! " He was not happy,
evidently.

I told him to be quiet. I did not tell him that

336

About What is Due to Contrition

I was sick with terror at the imminent thunder-
storm.

A sword-like flame split the heavens, and set
them all ablaze. The world became black
shadows floating on the blue of fire. On the
instant, followed a crash which shook the solid
earth as a heron shakes a lizard. And, with a
scream, new winds awoke; and fled, on beating
pinions.

" Pardon, sir, pardon ! " He flung himself
upon the floor.

I bade him count his beads. I was counting
mine in my trousers' pocket as fast as ever I
could go, leaning against the window, and look-
ing out to sea. He came and stood near my right
ankle.

" Of your kindness, sir, pardon ! "

Sleet and hail hissed and raged, resembling
steam.

" Sir, I pray you to be merciful ! "

In the south-east, came glimpses of Monte
Gargano, at times ; and, when rivers of flame
rove ravines through mountains of black cloud,
one could see the Tremiti, dotting a sea of blind-
ing blue. Lelio Orsi has painted such a dis-
tracted storm-torn sky.

" Sir, I confess myself to be a wicked boy ! "

The earth trembled, and was afraid. The
waves of the sea rode high, and dashed them-
selves to death against the towered rocks. Weird
" 337

About What is Due to Contrition

winds rushed shrieking down to catch the whirl-
ing spume : but the bHghting slash of hail thwarted
them, and scattered it, and beat it low.

" Sir, I offer a promise to amend my naughty-
ways ! "

Lightning and thunder flickered and roared
continually. Sea and sky rushed, each pursuing
other, through a black obscurity, which, splitting,
gave brief vistas of viridian blue.

" Sir, pardon ! "

I was speechless, counting hidden beads with
fervour, and motionless, — learning the shapes
and the sounds of the tumultuous spectacle, of
the din, with every wit. Toto moved to the dis-
tant corner of the window. He gave me such a
sort of look.

Far away eastward, the Diomedan Islands
flashed in view, riding on the tortured water like
a school of dolphins. In another moment,
thunderclouds came hurrying to blot them out.

Toto said no more, aloud. He leaned upon
the window-sill, and watched the storm, mutter-
ing little things sometimes.

The tempest was in its agony, ready to flee
away and be at rest. Hailstones melted into
rain, which fell in steady sheets. Overhead, a
greyer light began to feel its way. But far away,
and farther, sea and sky were frayed and torn by
heaving gusts of wind.

338

About what is Due to Contrition

Toto quivered as to his shoulders, but his face
was hidden, pressed against the pane.

The storm was leaving Vasto, Already, there
was a cleared space in the atmosphere, where the
sea sobbed sullenly, convulsively, like the throats
of beaten women after rage. But the distance
was black density; and fierce storms swept and
circled there in monstrous curves.

" A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah ! ! ! " Toto gasped.

It was a whirlpool of clouds, which drooped in
swaying tassels of mist ; and a whirlpool of waves,
which soared in hissing spray. From height and
depth, they rushed together seeking lips ; and,
twining, writhed close-clipped, hither, thither,
tortuously, over a boiling seething sea. A flash
of lightning, like a brandished sword, cut the rock-
ing rolling column, and drove the storm away,
and yet away.

"Sir, sir, — the day of the week, if you
please? "

"Thursday."

" Ah ! — And of the month ? "

" Don't know. Beginning of October. Third,
I think."

He did quick calculations with his fingers. He
gave himself a little shake of satisfaction. He
returned to his station at the window.

339

About What is Due to Contrition

The storm was away at the back of Gargano,
thinning into dissolution. I was aware of a wet
gleam from behind my tower ; and, down the
precipitous cliff beneath, waves rolled with crests
a-shine.

Toto was muttering, " The day itself — forgive-
ness — who could now refuse? — "

I concluded my more private matter with ex-
treme alacrity, O clemens, 0 pia, etc. ; and
observed that a person, knowing anything worth
knowing and omitting to let another share his
joy, deserved to be hanged. Indeed, hanging
was too good for such an one, I said.

Toto then revealed himself in all his majesty.
His right hand was arranged in a formal manner,
— the first and second fingers stretched out
straight, the third and fourth reposing on the
palm, the thumb erect and competent to wriggle
when occasion called, — and he preached in
this wise :

" After the blissful vision which has been vouch-
safed, la sua eccellenza will be aware that the
Padre Eterno takes no shame at showing mercy
to a sinner who is truly contrite."

I admitted the being aware of that.

" Then, la sua eccellenza shall also know, that
as soon as Giuda, cognominato Iscariote, had sold
his Master, a pain across the chest took him,
which made him feel very sorry, and try to make
good the damage which he had done : but, then,
it was too late — it always is too late ; and the

340

About What is Due to Contrition

thing went on. Nevertheless, there was that one
moment of contrition on the part of Giuda, co-
gnominato Iscariote, — a super-excellent trait in
anyone, as well as a merit of sorts. It passed.
It was written down in the book of the deeds of
his life, — written down by the angel-guardian
of Giuda, cognominato Iscariote.

" And the next moment there came an arch-
kakodaimon, looking very noble, but a blacka-
moor: and His Wickedness climbed and clung
upon the shoulders of Giuda, cognominato Isca-
riote, and made him see a tree, and made him
find a rope all ready to his hand ; and he gave
him not a moment in which to think of praying
for a prayer; so he simply hanged himself;
which made him very disappointed in the flick
of a finger, for the rope was old, and frayed, —
just the kind of rope a kakodaimon would pro-
vide ! — and, when he leaped, it throttled him,
and broke ; and dropped him deftly down to hell.

" Here was a shocking thing, — a thing on which
one had no right to calculate. It was so upset-
ting to the plans ; and it took the angel-guardian
of Giuda, cognominato Iscariote, unawares. Oh,
he was bad, that Apostle ! — undoubtedly, very
bad indeed, — an unscrupulous rascal, a bandit,
an accursed Jew, and a skinfull of covetousness
and greed. Also, a felo de se. But still, there
was that one moment of true contrition. In
justice, there was something due to him for
that.

34i

About What is Due to Contrition

" And that charitable angel-guardian spread his
white-winged arms, swimming i' the air right up
to paradise, as swiftly as an arrow feathered with
a sea-gull's plume: and he passed through the
gate of pearl, speaking neither to his brothers,
nor to the shining gods, for his errand was an
urgent one ; and he pierced the radiant throng
of angels and of the spirits of just men perfected;
flying onward — onward — always onward, to the
Duomo in the heart of heaven, where he went
and begged the favour of an Audience of the
Dweller-In-The-Innermost: to Whom he, weep-
ing, told a pitiful tale of how that he had had a
man to guard, — and how that man had, some-
how, tasted sin, — and, liking it, had plunged
therein as in a bath, — soaking his soul for years
and years and years, — until it softened, and be-
came a limp rag of a soul, weak, feeble, having no
more the strength to rise erect, to fight the battle of
a Christian man against temptation and the kako-
daimons of the depths ; — and, by and bye, he
found himself to be incapable of doing well, —
sin-saturated as he was : — then, last of all, he
crowned a wicked life with a Crime, — too mon-
strous to be named in words, it wouM be «itliintl.e know-
ledge of omniscience. Furthermore, the angel said, after
that Crime, his man had made experience of a
moment of efficacious grace (gratia efficax), from
which he drew enough of goodwill to repent him
truly of his sin, — there was his confession, / have
betrayed Innocence^ to prove it ; — and, after, in a

342

About What is Due to Contrition

wild spasm of remorse, he had given himself a
hanging with a silly sort of rope, the first that
came to hand, but rotten ; which had played him
the trick of breaking, and had dropped him down
to hell.

" That was the whole case, the angel-guardian
said; and, having performed three profound
prostrations as prescribed in the ritual, he arose,
and spread his hands, palm upward, weeping,
praying La Suprema Maesta e Grandezza to show
mercy, and to give a righteous judgment, because
of the moment, just the one moment, in which
the miserable Apostle had shown contrition.

" And Domeniddio loved that angel-guardian
for his gentle tender heart ; and He deigned to
make it an Order that, once in every year until the
consummation of the world, upon the day which
is farthest from the Birthday of the Chalice, —
that being the anniversary of his monstrous
Crime, — to Giuda, cognominato Iscariote, should
be conceded the inestimable envied privilege of
being drawn from the flaming pit of hell, where
never water is, and of being dipped by his angel-
guardian in the middle of the sea; whereby his
burning pangs might be assuaged, for just twice
as long a time as his contrition had endured,
according to the scripture, where it is written,
good measure, shaken together, pressed down, and
runnmg over the pottle.

" Sir, you have here the day itself : the portent
has been manifest before your eyes. For, you

343

About What is Due to Contrition

yourself have been grieved by the stillness of the
stifling heat ; and you yourself have seen how
that the sky has frowned, and blazed, and shaken;
and how that the sea has hissed, and seethed,
and boiled, at the apparition of one loathsome
little red-hot atom of bad man, who came, cloud-
covered, from the pit of hell, to take his yearly
dose of coolness.

" And, sir, — I, also, have experienced an
emotion of contrition : — it began more than
one hour ago : — and it will last as long as I
shall last : — dear Don Friderico — I do assure
you, sir, — I do assure — "

I gave him, in sign of amity, a cigarette.

I was very happy to have seen a waterspout.

And here was my lord the sun, beaming like
a bride, at nightfall, in her crown and yellow-
crocus-coloured veil.

344

(^These Six Tales were printed in the " Yellow Book^''
in 1895-6. It has been deemed advisable to include them
in this instalment : but it sho7ild be reme?nbered that
they were related a year before the Spring and Summer
sections.')

345

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

" ^^''^V NCE upon a time, sir, the people in
■ ■ Rome were building two churches ; the
^^_^ one for Sampietro on the Monte Vati-
cano, and the other for Sampaolo outside the
walls of the city. The two gods used to spend
all their spare time sitting on one of the balconies
of heaven, and watching the builders ; for they
were very anxious about their churches. Sam-
pietro desired to have His church finished before
that of Sampaolo ; wherefore, every night after
it was dark outside, He used to leave the keys
of heaven in the porch, and to ask His brother,
Santandrea, to give an eye to the gate while He
went round the corner for a minute or two.
Then He would slip down to the church of
Sampaolo; and take to pieces the work which
the builders had done during the day; and if
there were any carvings, or pillars, or things of
that sort, which took His fancy. He would carry
them away and build them into His own church,
patching up the part, from which He had taken
them, so well that no one could tell the differ-
ence. And so, while the builders of the church

347

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

of Sampietro made a progress which was wonder-
ful, the builders of the church of Sampaolo did
not make any progress at all.

" This went on for a long while, and Sampaolo
became more uneasy in his mind every day, and
he could not take his food, and nothing gave him
any pleasure. Santacecilia tried to amuse him
with some new songs which she had made; but
this drove him into anger, for he said that a woman
ought to learn in silence with subjection.

" One day, while he was leaning over the bal-
cony, he saw two pillars taken into his church,
which were of yellow antique, most rare and pre-
cious, and had been sent from some foreign coun-
try; I do not know its name. He was altogether
delighted ; and he went down to the gate, and
asked Sampietro to be so kind as to tell him
whether He had ever seen finer pillars. But
Sampietro only said that they were rather pretty ;
and then He asked Sampaolo to get out of the
way, and to let Him shut the gate, in case that
some improper souls should sneak in.

" That night, sir, when it was dark, Sampietro
went and robbed those two pillars of yellow
antique, and set them up in His own church.
But in the morning, Sampaolo, having thought of
nothing but his new pillars all through the night,
said a black mass as being shorter; and then he
went on to the balcony, to have the pleasure of
looking at his church with its beautiful pillars of
yellow antique. And when, he saw that they

348

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

were not there, he became disturbed in his mind ;
and he went and sat down in a shady place to
consider what he should do next. After much
thought, it appeared to him that he had been
robbed ; and as he knew that a person, who has
once committed a theft, will continue to steal as
long as he remains free, he resolved to watch his
church at night, that he might discover who had
stolen his pillars.

"During the day the builders of the church of
Sampaolo put up two fresh pillars of yellow
antique, and two of porphyry, and two of green
antique as well. Sampaolo gloated over these
fine things from his seat on the balcony, for he
knew them to be so beautiful that they would
tempt the thief to make another raid, and then
he would catch him.

" After Ave Maria, he made friends with one of
the angels, who was putting on his armour in the
guard-room before taking his place in the line of
sentries who encircle the Citta di Dio both by
day and night. These angels, sir, are a hundred
cubits high, and Sampaolo asked one of them,
whose post would be near the gate, to hide him
under his wings, so that he could watch for the
robber without being seen. The angel said that
he was most happy to oblige ; for Sampaolo was
a Roman of Rome, and very well-thought-of in
heaven; and, when the night came on, he hid
Sampaolo in the shadow of his feathers.

" Presently that Apostle saw Sampietro go out

349

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

of the gate ; and the light, of which the bodies
of the gods are made, went with Him, so that,
though the earth was in darkness, Sampaolo
could see plainly all that He did. And He
picked up the two fresh pillars of yellow antique,
and the two of red porphyry, and also the two
of green antique in His hand, just as you, sir,
would pick up six paint-brushes ; and He car-
ried them to His own church on the Monte
Vaticano, and set them up there. And when
He had patched up the place from which He
had taken the pillars so well that they could not
be missed, He came back into heaven.

" Sampaolo met Him at the gate and accused
Him of thieving; but Sampietro answered bluster-
ingly that He was the Prince of the Apostles,
and that He had a right to all the best pillars
for His church. Sampaolo replied that, once
before, he had had occasion to withstand Sam-
pietro to the face because He was to be blamed
(at Antioch, sir) ; and then high words arose,
and the two gods quarrelled so loudly that the
Padre Eterno, sitting on His Great White Throne,
sent San Michele Arcangiolo to bring the dis-
putants into The Presence.

" There, Sampaolo said :

"*0 Re dej secolj, immortale et invisibile, —
The citizens of Rome are building two churches,
the one for me and the other for Sampietro;
and for some time I have noticed that while the
builders of my church do not seem to make any

350

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

progress in their work, the church of Sampietro
is nearly finished. The day before yesterday
(and to-day is Saturday), two pillars of yellow
antique were set up in my church, most beauti-
ful pillars, O Signor Iddio; but somebody stole
them away during the night. And yesterday
six pillars were set up, two of yellow antique,
two of green antique, and two of porphyry.
To-night I watched to see if they would be
stolen ; and I have seen Sampietro go down
and take them to His own church on the Monte
Vaticano.'

" The Padre Eterno turned to Sampietro asking
whether He had anything to say.

" And Sampietro answered :

" 'O Re del Cielo, — We have long ago learnt
the lesson that it is not well to deny that which La
Sua Divina Maesta knows to be true; wherefore
We acknowledge that We have taken the pillars,
and many other decent things too, from the church
of Sampaolo, and have set them up in Our Own.
Nevertheless, We desire to represent that there
can be no question of robbery here. O Dio
Omnipotente, You have deigned to make Us
the Prince of the Apostolic College, the Keeper
of the Keys of Heaven, and the Head of Your
Church on earth ; and. We ask, is it fitting that
the churches which men build in Our honour
should be less magnificent than those which
they build for Sampaolo. Therefore, in taking
these paltry pillars, concerning which he chooses

351

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

to make a fuss, We are simply within Our right —
a right actually inherent in the dignity of the
rank which Lo Splendore Immortale della Sua
Maesta has been graciously pleased to confer
upon Us.'

" But this defence did not content the Padre
Eterno, He said that the secret method in
which Sampietro worked was a proof that He
knew Himself to be doing what He ought not
to do; and, further, that it was not fair to the
men who were building the church of Sampaolo
to take away the fine things for which they
spent their money for the honour of Sampaolo.
Wherefore He cautioned Sampietro not to allow
it to occur again.

" On the next day there was a festa, when the
builders did not work; but, on the Monday,
they placed in the church of Sampaolo several
slabs of lapis lazuli and malachite ; and during
the night Sampietro, who was the most bold and
daring of men, had the hardihood to take them
away and to put them in His own church, right
before the very eyes of Sampaolo, who stood at
the gate to watch Him. By the time He was
returned, Sampaolo had made a complaint before
the Padre Eterno; and Sampietro found Him-
self most severely spoken to, and warned that,
supposing Him to persist in His disobedience,
not even His exalted rank, and general useful-
ness, and good conduct would save Him from
punishment.

352

About Sampietro and Sampaolo

" The following day, which was Tuesday, a
marvellous baldachino of jasper and violet marble,
being a gift from the Grand Turk, was put up
in the church of Sampaolo ; and at night Sam-
pietro descended as usual and robbed it. For
the third time Sampaolo complained to the
Padre Eterno, and then all the Court of Heaven
was summoned into The Presence to hear Judg-
ment given.

" The Padre Eterno said — and His Voice, sir,
was like rolling thunder — that as Sampietro had
been guilty of disobedience to the Divine Decree,
in that, urged on by vanity. He had taken the
property of Sampaolo for His own church on
the Monte Vaticano ; and, by the act, had pre-
vented the church of Sampaolo from becoming
finished ; it was an Order that, until the consum-
mation of the world, the great church of Sam-
pietro in Rome should never be completed.
Also, the Padre Eterno added that, as He would
give no encouragement to sneaks and tell-tale-
tits, the church of Sampaolo Outside-The-Walls,
though finished, should be subjected to destruc-
tion and demolition, and, as often as it was re-
built, so often should it be destroyed.

" And you know, sir, that the church of Sam-
paolo is always being burned down or blown
up, and that the church of Sampietro has never
left the builders' hands."

23 353

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

" "^ ]^0U know, sir, that Sansebastiano and
Sampancraziowere always very friendly
together. While they lived in this
world, they were used to get into mischief each
in the other's company ; for they were ex-
tremely fond of playing unexpected tricks upon
the pagans who were putting the Christians to
death.

" Then, when their turn came, they gladly suf-
fered martyrdom ; and Sampancrazio was killed
by a black panther in the Colosseo of Rome,
while Sansebastiano was stuck as full of arrows
as a hedgehog is of prickles ; and when that did
not kill him he was beaten with a club until he
died. And then they both went to live in
heaven for ever and the day after.

" Now, I shall let you know what appearance
they present, so that you may recognise them
when you see them. First of all, you must
understand that the gods in heaven have eternal
youth ; that is to say, if you are old when your
life in this world comes to its end, you just shut
your eyes while your angel-guardian takes you

354

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

to paradise ; and, when you open them the next
minute, you are there, and you have gone back
to the prime of your hfe, that is, to the age of
forty-six when manhood begins, and so you are
for always ; but if you die while you are young
you do not change your age, but remain at the
age at which you died. That is, supposing you
to depart in the odour of sanctity, or as a martyr,
which last is better, — and, of course, you can
always do that if you choose. And, even suppos-
ing it is good for you to have a little purgatory
first, so long as you shall have kept good
friends with Madonnina, she will go and take
you out on the Saturday after you have died, and
that door opens into paradise.

" And your body, too, is changed, so that you
cannot suffer any more pains or illnesses. Oh,
yes, it is made of flesh, just the same to look at
as this ; but, instead of the flesh being made of
the dust of the earth, it is made of the Fire of God,
and that is why wherever the gods go they are all
effulgent like the stars.

" Ah, well ! Sansebastiano was eighteen years
old when he went to heaven, and so he is always
eighteen years old ; and Sampancrazio was four-
teen, and so he is always fourteen ; and they are
quite as cheerful and daring and mischievous as
they were in this world ; indeed when a joke has
been played upon any of the gods, they always
say, ' By Bacchus ! there are those boys again.'

*' There are, of course, very many boys in

355

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

heaven, but now I am only telling you of these
two — Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio, and the
third, whose name is Sanluigi ; and the fourth who
is the angel-guardian of Sansebastiano, called
Sebastianello,

" You must know that Sanluigi was altogether
different from Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio.
Of course, he had not been a martyr like them,
though he was sumptuously furnished with curious
virtues; and I suppose his manners are as formal
as they are, because he has only been in heaven
a little while, and finds the novelty surprising.
He always goes about with his eyes on the ground,
you know, and there is not a bit of fun in him.
You see, he was a Jesuit; and there were no
such things in the world until hundreds of years
after Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio had gained
their haloes. When he first came, Sansebastiano
and Sampancrazio thought there was another boy
like themselves to join in their games ; and they
were quite eager to make his acquaintance, and
to give him a welcome. So the moment the
cantors of the quire gave the intonation of the
Iste Confessor, they rushed down to the gate
to offer him their friendship. Sanluigi came
slowly through the archway, dressed in a cassock
and a surplice. He carried a lily in his hand,
and his eyes were fixed upon the ground; but
when Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio, whose
arms were locked together, said how pleased they
were to see him, he looked up at them shyly and

356

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

said, ' Many thanks,' and then the vision of San-
sebastiano so shocked him that he blushed deeply
and re-veiled his eyes; and, afterward, he kept
out of their way as much as possible.

" You see, sir, Sansebastiano was quite naked :
indeed he had nothing about him but his halo
and an arrow ; for, when the pagans made a
target of him, they stripped him of his clothes,
and so he came to heaven like that. You may see
his picture in the duomo whenever you choose,
if you do not believe me. But he was so beauti-
ful and muscular, and straight and strong, and his
flesh so white and fine, and his hair like shining
gold, that no one had ever thought of him as
being naked. Sanluigi, however, found him
perfectly dreadful ; and pretended to shiver when-
ever he met him, which was not very often, be-
cause Sanluigi spent most of his time in the
chapel saying office.

" Sansebastiano did consider him a little rude,
perhaps, and, of course, Sampancrazio agreed
with his friend ; and, though they were quite good-
natured and unwilling to make any unpleasantness,
still they could not help feeling hurt when this
newcomer — and that was the worst name they
ever called him — turned up his nose because their
minds and their manners were more gay and free
than his.

" One very hot afternoon in summer the two
gods, Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio, went to
practise their diving in a delicious pool of cool

357

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

water under a waterfall ; and when they were tired
of that, they reclined on the bank and dangled
their legs in the stream, while the sun was drying
their haloes.

" Presently Sanluigi came creeping along with
an old surplice in his hand, and he went up to
Sansebastiano and offered it to him, holding his
lily up before his face all the time he was speak-
ing. Sansebastiano did not move, but lay there
on the green grass, looking at Sanluigi with his
merry laughing eyes, and saying not a word ; and
Sampancrazio did the same. Sanluigi repeated
his offer from behind his lily, and implored San-
sebastiano to put on the surplice, — just to hide
his poor legs, he said. Sansebastiano replied
that he did not think there was anything amiss
with his legs, which were good enough, as far as
he could see, because the Padre Eterno had made
them like that, and He always did all things well.
Then Sanluigi offered the surplice to Sampan-
crazio, who was also naked, because he had been
bathing ; but he laughed as he answered, with
many thanks, that he had some very good clothes
of his own, which he would put on when his body
was dry; and he pointed out his beautiful tunicle
of white wool with a broad purple stripe down
the front, and his golden bulla, and his sandals of
red leather, with the ivory crescent on the toes,
for he was noble, sir, and also a Roman of Rome.
Sanluigi said that the tunicle was rather short but
it was better than nothing; and then he turned

358

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

to Sansebastiano and again entreated him to put
on the surpHce.

" Presently Sansebastiano stretched out a splen-
did arm from the long grass wherein he was
lying, and he grabbed the surplice so suddenly
that Sanluigi dropped down on his knees, and his
lily became disarranged ; and, while he was
recovering himself, Sansebastiano rolled the sur-
plice into a ball and tossed it over to Sampancrazio,
who threw it back to him ; and the two saints
played pallone with it quite merrily for some
minutes; and all the time Sanluigi was protesting
that he had not brought it out for that purpose,
and beseeching them not to be so frivolous.
But the game amused them to such an extent that
they were now running to and fro upon the bank,
and taking long shots each at other. Sanse-
bastiano had just made a particularly clever
catch ; but in returning the ball he over-balanced
himself and tumbled, splash heels over head, into
the pool. This mischance had a bad effect upon
his aim, and instead of the ball going in the
direction he intended — that is to say, towards
Sampancrazio — it flew straight in Sanluigi's face.
He again was holding up his lily for a screen, and
consequently it was crushed and broken, and all
the blooms destroyed ; and he seemed so grieved
that the two friends — for Sansebastiano immedi-
ately swam to the side and climbed out of the
pool — tried to console him by telling him that
they would get him another in two winks of an eye.

359

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

"But Sanluigi said that would be of no avail,
because he always got his lilies off his altars below
there in the world, and no others would suit him ;
and there were none there now, because it was
not his festa till to-morrow, and nobody would
offer him any lilies till then.

" When they heard this, Sansebastiano and
Sampancrazio burst into roars of laughter, and
they made such a noise that the Padre Eterno,
Who was walking in the garden in the cool of
the day, and sent one of the cherubini from the
aureola to know what it was all about.

" Sampancrazio jumped into his tunicle and put
his bulla round his neck, while Sansebastiano
laced his sandals for him; and then the two
friends stood at ' Attention ! * as the Suprema
Maesta e Grandezza came under the trees towards
them. Of course you know, sir, that Sansebas-
tiano was in the army when he lived in the world ;
and he had taught Sampancrazio.

" Then Sansebastiano looked boldly upon the
Face of God, and said :

" ' O Signor Iddio Altissimo, we were laugh-
ing at Gigi because he will not have the lilies of
paradise, but prefers the nasty things which are
put upon his altars in the world.'

" Sanluigi got quite angry at hearing his lilies
called nasty ; and the Padre Eterno said that the
word certainly ought not to have been used un-
less Sansebastiano had a very good reason.

"Then Sampancrazio explained, that he was

360

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

sure Sansebastiano did not mean to make any
reflection upon the lilies qua lilies, because it
would not be becoming to speak against the
handiwork of the Padre Eterno ; but it was
because the people who offered the lilies to San-
luigi did not come by them in an honourable
manner, that he had called them nasty : and San-
sebastiano nodded his head forward and said that
was just it.

" These words made Sanluigi still more angry;
and his wrath was so righteous and so unaffected,
that Sansebastiano saw him to be really in igno-
rance of the dirty tricks of his clients ; so he said
that if La Divina Maesta would deign to allow
them, he and Sampancrazio would show Sanluigi
the source from which his lilies came. The Padre
Eterno was graciously pleased to grant permis-
sion, and passed serenely on His Way, for He
knew Sansebastiano to be a boy whom you might
trust anywhere.

" Then Sansebastiano told Sanluigi that if he
could put up with the company of himself and
of Sampancrazio, he proposed a little gita into
the world that very night ; because, the next day
being his festa, all the boys would be getting
lilies for his altars ; and in the meantime he in-
vited him to come and look over the ramparts.

" So the three young gods went and stood upon
the wall of gold ; and, beneath their feet, they
could see the world whirling round in space.
Sansebastiano pointed out that, by midnight,

361

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

they would be just above a little white city
which clustered up the side of a distant moun-
tain. He said that it was called Genzano, and
that the Prince Lorenzo di Francesco Sforza-
Cesarini had there a palace with the most beauti-
ful gardens in all the world, which were certain
to be a-brim of lilies at that time of year.

" Sanluigi made answer that he would like to
say his matins and lauds, and to prepare his
meditation for the morning, before they started ;
and he agreed to meet Sansebastiano and Sam-
pancrazio at a little before midnight.

" You know, sir, that there is no night in
heaven, or rather, I should say, that it does not
get dark inside there ; and so, when Sanluigi
came to look for Sansebastiano and Sampan-
crazio, he found them in the orchard near the
gate, turning a skipping-rope for Santagnese and
some of her friends ; but Sanvito and Sancelso,
being tired of playing morra, were willing to take
their places at the rope ; and then they were all
ready to start on their journey.

" Sansebastiano called his angel, Sebastianello,
and told him to what place it was desired to

go-

" I ought to have let you know that the ap-
pearance of Sebastianello was exactly like that
of Sansebastiano ; only he did not carry an
arrow, and he had huge wings growing out
of his arms of the same colour as his flesh, but
whiter towards the tips of the feathers. And

362

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

then, of course, he was as high as a giant, like
all the other angels — and a hundred cubits high
is their ordinary size.

" The three gods mounted him in this manner :
Sampancrazio stood on his left instep and put
one arm round his leg to steady himself; and
Sansebastiano stood on his right instep and put
one arm round his leg to steady himself too ;
Sanluigi also stood on the right instep of Sebas-
tianello, close to Sansebastiano, who clasped him
round the waist with his other arm- When they
were ready, the angel, with a downward swoop
of his wings, rose from off the wall of gold, and,
spreading out his pinions to their full extent,
remained motionless, and dropped gently but
swiftly towards the earth.

" I should tell you that they had all made
themselves invisible, as the gods do when they
come down into the world, unless there shall be
some one present who is good enough to merit
a vision of the gods. When they were alighted
in the garden by the magnolia-tree, they left the
angel there ; and went to sit down near the lily-
beds. You understand that no one could see
them, and they rested against the edge of the
fountain and waited ; and Sanluigi took out his
beads to wile away the time.

" Presently, three or four men came into the
garden very quietly, and they stood under the
shade of a blue hydrangea bush. The eldest of
them appeared to be giving directions to the

3^3

About the Lilies of Sanluigl

others, and then they separated, and went each
to a different part of the garden.

" ' Who were those men? ' Sanluigi asked.

" ' Tell him, 'Bastiano,' Sampancrazio whis-
pered.

" ' Gardeners,' Sansebastiano murmured ; * they
have to watch all through the night between the
twentieth and the twenty-first of June.'

" * And I suppose they will be going to cut
the lilies for the boys who are coming to fetch
them?' Sanluigi said.

" Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio nearly
choked with laughter; and then Sansebastiano
said that, if Sanluigi would have the goodness to
be patient, he should see what he should see.

" They watched the gardeners go and hide
themselves in the syringas, and for some time
there was silence.

" Then there came six ragamuffin boys, creep-
ing cautiously through the darkness, who made
their way towards the lily-beds. As soon as
they were there, the men in the bushes jumped
out upon them with a loud yell, whereupon the
boys took to their heels, fleeing in a direction
different to that by which they had come. The
men gave chase, but they ran so swiftly that
they were soon out of sight. Now, as soon as
they were gone, twenty or thirty more ragamuffin
boys rushed noiselessly out of the darkness, and
began to cut the lilies into sheaves as fast as pos-
sible. In a short time there was not one left

364

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

standing, and then they made off with their spoils
and disappeared.

" The next minute the gardeners came back,
loudly lamenting that they had failed to catch
the robbers ; but when they saw the beds where
the lilies once had stood, they called for Madonna
to have pity on them. And the chief gardener
also wept, for he said the Prince would surely
send him to prison.

" But the three gods continued to sit still by
the fountain.

" Sanluigi was trembling very greatly; but be-
cause he is, as you know, of such an admirable
innocence, he did not understand what he had
seen ; and he begged his companions to explain
it.

" So Sansebastiano told him that the boys of the
world were wicked little divels, and very clever,
too. Wherefore it was their custom to send the
six best runners first, because they knew that the
gardeners would be watching. And these six
were to make the said gardeners chase them and
to lead them a long dance, so that the others
could come, as soon as the place was clear, and
steal the lilies. All of which had been done.

" And then Sanluigi grieved greatly at this ap-
palling turpitude; but most of all because the
gardeners would lose their places. So he asked
Sansebastiano if he could not do something for
them.

" Sansebastiano answered that they would be

365

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

very pleased and quite happy if Sanluigi would
show himself to them, for they were most respect-
able men, and pious into the bargain ; neither had
they sworn nor used bad words.

"But Sanluigi was so modest that he did not
like to show himself alone, and he held out his
hands, the one to Sansebastiano and the other to
Sampancrazio, saying:

" ' My friends — if you allow me to say so —
dear 'Bastiano — and dear Zino — who have been
so kind to me, let us all show ourselves, and then
I will give them back the lilies.'

" So they called Sebastianello and mounted
upon his insteps again ; and then a silver light,
more bright than any star, beamed from them,
and the gardeners saw in the midst of the blaze
the giant angel by the magnolia-tree, and the
three gods standing in front of him — Sanluigi in
the middle, with Sansebastiano on his right hand
and Sampancrazio on his left hand. Then the
gardeners fell on their knees returning thanks
for this vision ; and, as the angel spread his wings
and rose soaring from the ground, Sanluigi made
ijlthc sign of the cross over the garden. But the
men stood all amazed, and watched till the
brightness seemed to be only a tiny star; and so
the three gods went back with the angel to para-
dise.

" And, after they had disappeared, the garden-
ers saw the lily-beds to be full of flowers more
beautiful than ever had been seen before. But

366

About the Lilies of Sanluigi

when the thieves brought their stolen flowers to
the Church of Sanluigi in Via Livia they were
nothing but sticks and dirty weeds.

" Those three gods are most friendly together
now, because Sansebastiano and Sampancrazio
cannot help admiring Sanluigi for his strange
innocence, as well as for the strange penance with
which he gained his place in paradise; and they
are always delighted to do anything to oblige
him, because, having been longer there than he,
they understand the ways of that blessed place
so well ; while Sanluigi carries only the lihes of
paradise, and is never so happy as when he is
choosing the best branches of golden palm for
his two martyr-friends ; nor does he allow him-
self to be shocked at Sampancrazio on account of
his gay heart, nor at Sansebastiano because he is
naked and not ashamed.

" How should he be ashamed, sir? "

367

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

" "W '« "THEN you have the happiness, sir, to
% /% / see the Padre Eterno sitting upon
T ▼ His Throne, I can assure you that,
at least, your eyes will be satisfied with the spec-
tacle of many splendid personages who are there
also.

" These, you know, are called the angels, and
they are in nine rows of endless depth. All these
rows are in the shape of the body of a fish, just
like that gold ring on your finger. Those in the
first row near by are named serafini, but I am
not to speak of them. Those in the second row
are called cherubini ; and you will find their ap-
pearance quite beautiful and curious to look at.
They have neither arms, nor bodies, nor legs,
like the other angels. They are simply heads,
like those of little boys. Their eyes are as brown
as the shadows on the stream, which you fished
last Thursday, when the sun was shining through
the trees. Their skin, if you will only believe me,
has the colour and brightness of the blue jewels
which la Signora Duchessa wears at night, and
their hair waves like the sea by Ardea. They

368

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

have no ears ; but, in the place where the ears of
a boy would be, they have wings shaped like
those of a sand-piper, and blue as the sky at day-
dawn. These flutter and shine for ever in regular
watches in the second ring of the Glory of the
Highest, to cool the perfumed air with a gentle
quivering of their feathers.

" Once upon a time, some of these cherubini
came to hear of the pastimes with which people
in the world weary themselves ; and they humbly
asked permission of the Padre Eterno to make a
little gita to the earth, and to have a little divel
to play with, the next time they should be off
duty. And the Padre Eterno, Who always allows
you to have your own way when He knows that
it will teach you a lesson, made the sign of the
cross, and said, ^^4* ^T IS ALLOWED TO YOU.

" So the following day a very large number — I
believe about ninety-five milliards, but I should
not like to be quite sure, because I do not know
exactly — of these beautiful little blue birds of
heaven were taken by San Michele Arcangiolo
down into the world, and they perched in the
trees in the gardens of the Palazzo Sforza-Cesa-
rini, in that city over the lake.

" San Michele Arcangiolo left them there, while
he made the second of his journeys into the pit
of hell. The first, you shall know, was when he
had conquered the prince of the divels in a
dreadful duel and bound him in chains and flames
for a thousand years. As he passed along the
24 369

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

pathway down the red-hot rocks, the flames of
burning divels Hcked upward till, meeting the
cool air of paradise which San Michele Arcangiolo
breathed, they curved backward, and still upward,
forming a sort of triumphal arch of yellow flame
above his head.

" When he arrived at the gate where hope must
be laid down, he called aloud that the Father and
King of gods and men had occasion for the
services of a young imp, bad, but not too bad.
The arch-fiend shook his chains with rage, be-
cause he was obliged to obey; and caused a
horrible little kakodaimon to flash into bodily
shape from a puddle of molten brimstone.

" If you looked at his face or his body, you
would have thought he was a boy of the age of
fourteen years ; but his eyeballs glittered with the
red of a burning coal. If you looked at his arms,
you would have thought he was a bat, for wings
grew there of spikes and skin. Oh, and he had
nasty little horns in his hair, but it was not hair
but vipers ; and from his waist to his feet he was
a he-goat, and all over he was scarlet. It was a
different scarlet to the scarlet coat of that English
soldier whom I saw once by the Porta Pia of
Rome. I can only make you understand what I
mean, by saying that it was the colour of the
ashes of burning wood, which have been almost
dead, but which you have blown up into a fiery
glow without flame. He was much that is bad
and hideous from his hoofs to his horns; and no

370

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

one, whether he were god, or angel, or man as
you are, sir, so long as he had the protection of
Madonna, would need to be a bit afraid of him ;
because his nastiness was clear, and he could be
seen through like a piece of glass; and in the
middle of him there was his dirty dangling heart
as black as ink.

" San Michele Arcangiolo, who knows exactly
how to deal with everybody, and especially with
a scimiotto like this, stuck his lance through
the length of the little divel's belly, just as
Gianetta would spit a woodcock for toasting;
and holding it out before him, — it is always
best to see mischief in front of you, — he carried
the writhing, wriggling little divel up into the
world. The flames, as before, licked upward
and around the great archangel, but never a
feather was singed, nor a blister came upon his
whitest skin, for they could not pierce the ice
of his purity ; but all the same they made the
little divel kick and struggle, — just as I should,
sir, if you whipped me naked with a whip of
red-hot wires, instead of with the lilac twigs
which you do use when I am black with crime.

" So they came into the Prince his garden ; and,
having released the little divel from his uncom-
fortable position, San Michele Arcangiolo —
who, because he commands the armies in
heaven, is very fond of soldiers — went down
into the city to pass a half-hour inspecting the
barracks.

371

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

" When the Httle divel found himself free, he
could hardly believe his good luck ; and sat for
a few minutes rubbing the sparks out of his eyes,
and wondering what his next torture would be.
Meanwhile, the cherubini sat in the trees saying
nothing, but watching with all their might, for
never had they seen such a thing before.

" Presently, as nothing happened to the little
divel, he plucked up what small courage he had
to take a sly look round. The first thing he
saw was the fountain near the magnolia-tree ;
and as the divels know very well what water is,
although a rare commodity in their own country,
where one drop is worth more than all the
wealth the world has ever seen, he plunged head-
foremost into the basin, to cool the burning
pangs which continually torment him. And
still the cherubini said no word ; but they
watched with all their eyes.

" Now the basin, sir, is a deep one, as you know,
because the noble Sforza often dive in there when
the sun is in Leo. And the little divel disap-
peared in the water. But, a moment after, his
head popped up, twitching with pain, amid clouds
of steam and a frightful hissing; and he screamed
very much and began to clamber over the edge
with every circumstance of speed.

" When he got on the grass, he jumped and
skipped all over the place, and flapped his wings
and squeezed his hairy legs, and stroked his
naked breast, and rolled about on the ground,

372

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

and leaped, and howled, till the cherubini, finding
him to be most diverting, laughed so much that
they tumbled out of the trees, and came and
fluttered round the little divel ; for this was a far
funnier entertainment even than that which they
had promised themselves.

" And the reason of it all is very easy to under-
stand, if you will only think. You see, one of
the torments that the divels and the damned
have to bear is to be disappointed alway; they
never get their wishes fulfilled; all their plans,
no matter how carefully they construct them,
fall to the ground ; all their arrangements alway
are upset at the very last moment, and every-
thing goes by the rule of contrary. So, when
the wretched little creature plunged into the cold
water, the heat of hell-flame boiled it, in a
flash ; and, instead of being cooled at all, the
little divel took a very handsome scalding. Now,
when the cherubini had had their fill of laughter,
and could observe accurately this sight, which
was to them so strange, they saw great patches
of scalded flesh hanging in shreds and strips
from his neck and sides and back and belly, and
the skinny leather of his wings crinkled and
warped, and the horn of his hoofs beginning to
peel ; and they would have felt sorry, if to grieve
over a little divel had not been wrong. So they
said nothing, hovering in the air around him,
and looking at him with their clear eyes all the
time.

373

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

" The little divel looked at them too ; and, being
a cheeky little beast, he asked who, the hell, they
were staring at.

" They said that they came to play with him,
and they desired him to do some more tricks,
and to tell them merry stories, and where he
came from, and what he did there, and how he
liked it, and why he had that nasty black heart-
shaped blotch hanging in the middle of his inside,
and many other things.

" The little divel answered that he had had a bad
accident, and he was not going to hurt his throat
by shouting to a lot of blue birds up there in the
sky; and if they wanted him to answer their
questions, they must come down lower, because
he was in great pain.

" And the cherubini wondered very much
where this pain could be in which the little divel
said he was; and, also, what kind of thing was
this same pain : but, as they were curious and
wanted to know, they descended a bit until they
fluttered in a ring round and round the little
divel's head.

" And there they became aware of a horrible
stench, and they said one to another : * He stinks
— stinks of sin! ' But, because they wished to
be diverted, they resolved to put up with small
inconveniences for a while.

" Still the little divel was not satisfied ; and per-
ceiving that these would be very agreeable play-
mates, he tried to make a good impression. So

374

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

he flopped down upon his stomach, and propped
up his chin in his hands, and invited the cheru-
bini to come and sit round him and hsten to
such tales as they had never heard before. And
the cherubini came a little lower, but they did
not sit down.

" And then other things happened.

" Suddenly, the cherubini found that they did
not desire to play with this little divel any longer ;
and with one swoop of their wings, sounding like
the strong chord you strike, sir, when you begin
to strum your arciliuto in the evening, they re-
tired to paradise ; while the earth opened under
the little divel, and a red flame, shaped like a
hand with claws, came up and gripped and
squeezed him so tightly round the waist, that his
face bulged, and his eyes went out like crabs',
and his breasts swelled like pumpkins, and his
shoulders and arms like sausages, and the skin of
his hairy thighs became balloons, and burst; and
then he was tossed back into his puddle of mol-
ten brimstone.

" When Ave Maria rang, and this company of
cherubini went on duty in the aureola, the Padre
Eterno observed, from the expression of their
faces, that they had been insulted, and their feel-
ings hurt. And, when La Sua Maesta deigned
to inquire the reason, they replied that the little
divel, with whom He had allowed them to play,
had been very rude, and they had no desire to

375

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

see him any more; for they had asked him to
show them funny tricks, and to tell them merry
stories, and where he came from, and what he
did there, how he liked it, why he had a nasty
black heart-shaped blotch dangling in the middle
of his inside, and so forth ; and that he had
agreed to answer all this, and to play with them,
if they would come and sit down on the grass
round him ; but they had been obliged to reply
that they were not able to sit down; and the
little divel had asked why not; and they had
answered politely that they had not the where-
withal ; and then the little divel jumped up from
the ground, where he was lying with his legsa-strad-
dling, and showed them that he could sit down,
and had turned heels over head, and laughed
and jumped and made a gibe and a jeer of them,
because he could do things impossible to them,
and had also done many other disgusting tricks
before them, which had caused them much
offence ; and so they were bored and came back
to paradise.

" They added that, while their consciences
were quite devoid of envy of this wretched
little bragger, still they did not desire to mix
with that class of person ; and they begged par-
don if they had seemed to prefer their own will
this time.

" And the Padre Eterno smiled, and at that
Smile the light of heaven glowed like a rainbow,
and the musick rose in a strain so beautiful that I

376

A Caprice of Some Cherubim

believe I shall die when I hear it, and He made
the sign of the cross and said : It IS WELL, My
CHILDREN, AND GOD BLESS YOU. BENEDICAT VOS
OMNIPOTENS DEUS l^ll^tfl PaTER ET t^tjll^
FiLIUS ET l£|}^^ SPIRITUS SANCTUS."

377

About Beata Beatrice and

iiij

About Beata Beatrice and the Mamma
OF Sampietro

" A H, Don Friderico, don't be angry with
/% me, — oh, don't — because really I do
L JL. love her so ! What else can I do
when she is as pretty as that; and as good,
and as cheerful, and as patient? And when at
hestern eve I met her by the boat-house, I took
her into my arms asking her to kiss me; and, sir,
she did. Then I told her that I wished her well,
and she said that she also wished me well. Also,
I said that I would marry her; and when I
looked into her eyes they were full of tears, so I
know she loves me ; but she is ashamed because
she is so poor, and her mamma such a hag. Do
I mind her being poor — the little pigeon? Ma
che ! For when I feel her soft arms round me
and her breath in my hair, and when I kiss her
on the lips and neck and bosom, then I know it
is Beatrice, her whiter body and her whitest
soul, that I want — that I will care for, and not
her ragged clothes."

Toto jumped off the tree trunk and stood before
me, with all his lithe young figure tense and strung,
as he went on with his declamatory notices.

378

the Mamma of Sampietro

" Has not la sua eccellenza often said that I
am strong as an ox? Will it not be my perfect
joy to work hard to make my girl happy and
rich and grand as the sun? Do you think that I
spend your money at the wine-shop, or the tom-
bola? You know that I do not so sin. Am I a
man? No. Always have I saved. Now I shall
save more ; and in a year or two I shall ask your
permission to marry her. No, I don't want to go
away, to leave you. May the ten million kako-
daimons fly away with me to the pit of hell and
burn me for ever with their hottest fire, if I
should entertain any so base desire. Nor will
Beatrice make any difference to la sua eccellenza ;
you never need see her, you never need know
even that there is such a flower of paradise
blooming near you, if you do not wish to know.
And I can assure you that Beatrice has the great-
est respect for you ; and if only you will be so
good and so kind as to let us make ourselves
happy, she will be quite proud and glad to serve
you as well as I do, and to help me when I serve
you too. — And, sir, you know how fond you are
of a fritto? Well, Beatrice can make a rigaglie
of such tastiness, that you will say it must have
come straight from heaven ; and this I know
because I have tried it myself."

He flung himself down on the ground. He
kissed my hands, and kissed my feet, and wept,
and made me an awful scene.

I told him to get up and not be a young fool.

379

About Beata Beatrice and

I said that I did n't care what he did ; and de-
manded whether I had ever been a brute to him,
or denied him anything that was reasonable.

He swore that I was without spot or stain of sin,
devoid even of a blemish, that I always had been
so, that I always should be so, because I could not
help myself; the decoration of the earth with a
such 7)WJister ^ being obviously a part of the
Divine Plan : he wanted to go down on his knees
again ; but that I said he would do better to
bring the girl to me, and not to make me hotter
with his noise than I was then.

" To tell you the truth, sir," he replied, with
sudden suavity, "I was always quite sure that you
would have pity upon us when you should know
how very much we loved. Therefore when you
caught us last night, I told Beatrice that, now, I
must let you know everything; because I was as-
sured that, so long as I did not deceive you
(and you know that I have never done so), there
was nothing to fear; also I told her you would
without doubt like to see her, to give her good
counsel, because she was my friend ; and she
said that she would call that too much honour.
Then, sir, I felt her trembling against my heart,
so I kissed her for a long time, and told her to be
brave as I am; — and, — sir, — as you are so gra-
cious as to want to see her, — I have taken the
liberty of bringing her, — and she is here."

I always had admired the cleverness of this

1 The italics are mine, to emphasize the intended compliment.

380

the Mamma of Sampietro

lad, and felt not much surprise at his last an-
nouncement.

"Where?" I said.

" I put her behind that tree, sir," and he
pointed to a big oak about twenty yards away.
I could not help laughing at his deepness; and
he took courage, I suppose, from my auspicious
aspect. All sorts of clouds of hesitation, uncer-
tainty, and doubt, moved out of his clear brown
eyes, while his face set in a smile, absurd, and
complacently expectant. " Shall I fetch her,
sir?"

I nodded forward. I had had some small ex-
perience of his amours before; but this was a
new phase, and I thought I might as well pre-
pare myself for anything. He went a few paces
away, and disappeared behind the oak-tree.
There was a little rustle of the underwood, and
some kissing for a minute or two. Then he came
out again, leading his companion by the hand. I
said I was preparing for anytJiing, but I confess
to a little gasp at what I saw. It was not a boy
and girl who approached me, but a couple of
boys — apparently, at least. They came and
stood beside the hammock in which I was lying.
Toto, you know, was sixteen years old, a splen-
did, wild (discolo) creature, from the Abruzzi,
a figure like Cellini's Perseus; (don't misunder-
stand me : I mean the Waxen Model in Palazzo
del Bargello, and not — not the Bronze Abortion
of the Loggia dej Lanzi). His skin was brown,

381

About Beata Beatrice and

with real red blood under it, smooth as a peach,
and his aspect was as noble as a god. He had a
weakness for sticking a dead-white rose in the
black waves of hair over his ear, and the colour
of that rose against his cheeks, flushed as they
were now, was something for which to be truly
thankful. I used to make him wear white clothes,
on these hot summer days down by the lake. A
silk shirt opened, and the sleeves rolled up, show-
ing his broad brown chest and supple arms ; and
short thulakoi of the same, convenient for row-
ing. (He had half-a-dozen creatures of his own
rank under his command, all chosen for some
singular quality; and it was their business to
carry my books, photographick and bug-hunting
apparatus, and to wait upon me while I loafed the
summers away in the Alban hills, or, at later
date, along the eastern coast.) The seeming
boy, whom he had called Beatrice, seemed about
fourteen years old, with far more of rarity and
dain than even he. The bold, magnificent inde-
pendence of his carriage was replaced in her by
one of tender delicacy, quite as striking in its
way as the other. She wore her hair in a short
silky cocoon like Toto, and her shirt was but-
toned up to the spring of her pretty throat. She
came about as high as her boy's shoulder, and
stood before me with her poor little knees trem-
bling, and a rosy blush ebbing and flowing over
her flower-face. They were so exquisitely lovely, in
that sun-flecked shade with the blue lake for their

382

the Mamma of Sampietro

background, that I could not help keeping them
waiting during some minutes. Such pictures as
this are not to be seen every day. Presently he
put his arm round her neck, and she put hers
round his waist, and leaned against him a little.
But he never took his eyes off mine.

"Go on, Toto," I said; "you were about to
say — "

" Ah, well, sir, you see I thought if Beatrice
came to live with us — with me, I mean — it
would be more convenient if she looked like the
rest of us, because then she would be able to do
things for you as well as we can, and people will
not talk."

It struck me immediately that Toto was right
again, as usual; for, upon my word, this girl of
his would pass anywhere for a very pretty boy,
with just the plump roundness of the Florentine
Apollino, and no more.

" So I got some clean clothes of Guido's, and
brought them here early this morning, and then I
fetched Beatrice and put them on her, and made
her hide behind the tree, because I knew that
you would pretend to scold me about her when
you should come down to read the papers.
Therefore I determined to tell you everything,
and to let you know that the happiness of us
both was in your hands. And I only wanted
you to see her like this, in order that you
might know that you cannot be put to any dis-
comfort or inconvenience, if you are so kind as

383

About Beata Beatrice and

to allow us to love one another according to the
Evangel."

This looked right enough ; but, whether or no,
it would have been in execrable taste to show
nasty temper just then, so I told them to be as
happy as they pleased for I would not interfere
with them, so long as they did not interfere with
me. They both kissed my hands, and I kissed
Beatrice (she was a nosegay) on the forehead,
Toto looking on as proud as a white peacock.
And then I told him to take her away, to send
her home properly dressed, to avoid all disguise
for the future, and to return to me in half an hour.

I could see very well that these happenings
were natural enough; and it was not a parti
cared to play, to be harsh or ridiculous, or to
spoil an idyll so full of charm and newness. Be-
sides, I have reason to know, — oh, jolly well, I
have reason to know — the futility of interfering
between the male animal and his mate.

So when Toto came back I said nothing dis-
couraging or eimiiyant, beyond reminding him
that he ought to make quite sure of possessing
an enduring love for this girl, — a love which
would make him proud to spend his life with,
and for, her, and her only. I told him he was
very young, which was no fault of his, and that if
he would take my advice he would not be in a
hurry about anything. He said that my words
were the words of wisdom, and that he would
obey me just as he would Madonna del Portone in

384

the Mamma of Sampietro

her crown of glory if she came down and told him
things then and there ; that he had known Beatrice
since they were babies together, and always had
loved her far better than he loved his sisters, also,
in an altogether different way, — if I could only
understand. Last night, when he had held her
in his arms to tell her that he knew she wished
him well, suddenly he felt himself so strong, and
her so tender, and so tempting, that all of a minute
he desired her for his own, and to give some-
body a bastonatura of the very finest for her,
above all things to take her out of the clutches
of that dirty mean old witch-cat of a mamma of
hers, who never gave her any pleasure, kept her
shut up whenever there was a festa, and, holy
gods of paradise ! sometimes beat her, simply be-
cause she envied her for being beautiful, and
delicate, and bright, as a young primrose. What
it was to be cursed with a hag of a mamma like
that ; and what could Madonna be thinking about
to give such a donnicciuola of a mamma to his own
bellacuccia ! Not but what Madonna was some-
times inattentive; but then, of course, she had so
many people to look after, or she never would
have given to Sampietro such a mamma as she
had given.

Here, seeing a chance of changing the subject,
T remarked that it would be nice to know what
sort of a mamma Madonna had given to Sam-
pietro.

" Well, sir, you must know that the mamma of
25 385

About Beata Beatrice and

Sampietro was the meanest woman that ever
Hved — scraping and saving all the days of her
life, and keeping Sampietro and his two sisters
(the nun and the other one, of whom I will tell
you another time), for days together with noth-
ing to eat except perhaps a few potato peelings
and a cheese rind. As for acts of kindness and
charity to her neighbours, I don't believe she
knew the names of the said virtues, though of
course I cannot be certain ; and whatever good
there was in Sampietro, he must have picked
up elsewhere. As soon as he was old enough
to work he became a fisherman, as you know;
because, when II Santissimo Salvatore wanted
a Santo Padre to govern the Church, He went
down to the seaside and chose Sampietro; know-
ing that Sampietro, being a fisherman, was just
the right man to bear all kinds of hardships,
and to catch people's souls and take them to
paradise, just as he had been used to catch fish
and take them to the market. So Sampietro
went to Rome, and He reigned there for many
years. And at last the pagans settled that all
the Christians were to be killed. And the
Christians thought that, though they had no
objections to being killed in their proper persons,
it would be a pity to waste a good Pope like
Sampietro, who had been chosen and given to
them by the Signor Iddio Himself. Therefore
they persuaded Sampietro to run away on a night
of the darkest, and to hide Himself for a time in a

386

the Mamma of Sampietro

lonely place outside the gates of the City. After
He had gone on a little way along the Via
Appia — and the night was very dark — He was
aware of a grey light on the road in front of Him,
and in the light there was II Santissimo Himself;
whereat Sampietro was astonished, for La Sua
Maesta was walking towards Rome. To whom
Sampietro said: 'O Master, where do you go?'
Then the face of II Santissimo became very sad,
and He said : l^ / am going to Rome to ride
the Cross a second time. And then Sampietro
knew it was not a noble thing that He was
doing, running away all on the sly like this ;
because no shepherd leaves his sheep when
wolves come — at least, no shepherd worth a
baiocco. Then Sampietro turned round and
went back to Rome, where He was crucified with
much joy midway between the goals in the
Circus of Nero ; but He would not let Himself
be crucified in the manner consecrated by II
Santissimo, because He wished to make amends
for His weakness in trying to run away; where-
fore He begged and prayed to be crucified with
His head where His feet should be. The pagans
said most certainly, if He preferred it that way,
it was all the same to them. And so Sampietro
made no more ado, but simply went straight to
heaven. And, of course, when He was arrived
His angel-guardian clothed Him in a new cope
and a tiara and handed Him the Keys; and the
Padre Eterno put Him to look after the gate,

387

About Beata Beatrice and

which is a very great honour, but only His due,
because He had been of such high rank when
He lived in the world.

" Now after He had been there a little while,
His mamma also left the world, and was not
allowed to come into paradise : but because
her meanness amounted to mortal sin she was
sent to hell. Sampietro did not like this at
all, and when some of the other gods chaffed
Him about it He would grow angry. At last
He went to the Padre Eterno, saying that it
was by no means suitable that a man of His
quality should be disgraced in this way; and the
Padre Eterno, Who is so good, so full of pity and
of mercy that He would do anything to oblige
you if it is for the health of your soul, said He
was sorry for Sampietro, and He quite under-
stood His position. He graciously suggested
that perhaps the case of Sampietro's mamma
had been decided hurriedly, and He ordered her
angel-guardian to bring the book in which had
been written down all the deeds of her life, good
or bad.

"iji^^ 'Now,' said the Padre Eterno, * We

CAREFULLY WILL GO THROUGH THIS BOOK, AND,

IF We can find only one good deed that

SHE HAS DONE, WE WILL ADD TO THAT ONE
GOOD DEED THE MERITS OF OUR SON AND OF
HERS, SO THAT SHE MAY BE DELIVERED FROM
ETERNAL TORMENTS.'

" Then the angel read out of the book ; and

388

the Mamma of Sampietro

it was found that, in the whole of her life, she
had only done one good deed ; for a poor starv-
ing beggar-woman had once prayed her, per '1
Amor di Dio, to give her some food ; and she
had thrown her the green top of an onion which
she chanced to be peeling for her own supper.

" And the Padre Eterno instructed the angel-
guardian of Sampietro's mamma to take that
identical onion-top from the Treasury of Virtuose
Deeds, if indeed he could find so insignificant a
thing ; and to go and hold it over the pit of
hell ; so that if, by chance, she should boil up
with the other damned souls to the top of that
stew, then she might grasp the onion-top and by
it be dragged up to Heaven.

" The angel-guardian did as he had been com-
manded. He hovered in the air over the pit of
hell. He held out the onion-top with his right
hand. The furnace flamed. The burning souls
boiled and writhed like pasta in a copper pot, and
presently Sampietro's mamma came up thrusting
out her hands in anguish. And when she saw
the onion-top she gripped it, for she was a very
covetous woman ; and the angel-guardian began
to soar into the air, carrying her up to Heaven.

" Now when the other damned souls saw that
Sampietro's mamma was leaving them, they also
desired to escape ; and, clutching of the skirts
of her gown, they hung thereon, hoping to be
delivered from their pain. And still the angel-
guardian rose, and Sampietro's mother held the

389

About Beata Beatrice

onion-top, and many tortured souls held her
skirts, and others held the feet and skirts of those,
and again others held the last, and you surely
would have thought that hell was about to be
emptied straight away. And still the angel-
guardian rose higher, and the long stream of
people all hanging to the onion-top rose too, nor
was the onion-top too weak to bear the strain : so
great is the virtue of one good deed, — of but one
small good deed ! But when Sampietro's mamma
became aware of what was going on, and of what
a perfect godsend she was becoming to the num-
bers who were escaping from hell along with her,
she was annoyed : and, because she was a nasty
selfish and cantankerous woman, she kicked and
struggled, and even took the onion-top in her
teeth, so that she might use her hands to beat off
those who were hanging to her skirts. And she
fought so violently that she bit through the
onion-top, and tumbled back once more into hell
flame.

"So you see, sir, that it is sure to be to your
own advantage, if you are kind to other people
and let them have their own way, always suppos-
ing that they will not interfere with you."

I chuckled at Toto's moral reflections.

390

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

ONE of Toto's brothers was called Niccolo,
and he was going to be a priest. He
was nineteen years old, and very like
Toto in appearance, with this notable difference
— that there was no light in his eyes. In man-
ner, he was a curious gaunt awkward unworldly
creature, absolutely the opposite of Toto, who
had the charm and freedom of a young savage
whose manners had attained perfection. I don't
know why the clergy (for whom I entertain the
highest respect, of course,) should always slink
along by the wall, expressing by the cringing
obsequiousness of their carriage that they would
take it as a favour if some one kindly would kick
them ; but such is the deplorable case. I used to
see this Niccolo sneaking about the woods during
his summer vacation: but I don't think I ever
spoke to him except when he came to say,
"How do you do?" and "Good-bye." One
morning, soon after his arrival, I asked Toto
what was the matter with his brother; for he
looked even more caged, humpty-backed, and
slouching, more utterly miserable and crushed,

391

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

than usual. "'Cola, sir," he said, "you must
know, has a very feeling heart; and if he meets
with any little misfortune it is a much more seri-
ous thing to him than it would be to me. I, of
course, would say that it did n't matter, and look
for something else to amuse me ; but 'Cola will
think over his grief till it seems far greater than
it really is ; and he will not be able to eat his
food or to take any interest in anything ; he will
wish himself dead ; or that he had never given
himself the annoyance of being born. And I
suppose, now, he has had some little trouble in
his college — dropped his garter, perhaps, and
let his stocking down, when out with the came-
rata in the street, and he has thought about it so
much that he at last believes himself to have
committed a sin against the sixth commandment,
by an indecent exposure of his person. But, if I
have your leave, I will pierce him with a ques-
tion, for I can see him saying his beads behind
the Emissario."

Toto ran away, and T took a little nap.

When I awakened, he was coming down the
steps, shading his head with a monstrous rhubarb
leaf. " I am sure you will be much amused, sir,
when I tell you what is the matter with 'Cola,"
he said. " I have made him very angry with mc,
because I could not help but laugh at him ; and
he says that I should certainly burn for making
a mock of the clergy — clergy, indeed, and he
only a sub-deacon, and I his brother who know

392

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

all about him, and everything he ever did ! And
Geltruda, too ! For my part, I am sure it is a
gift straight from Heaven to be called to the
priesthood, because I remember that 'Cola used
to be quite as fond of enjoying himself as I am ;
but since he first went to the Seminario he will
not look at a petticoat — that is to say, at the
face that belongs to it ; for it is only the petti-
coats he does look at. Have I not seen my little
mother cry when he comes home, because he
only puts his lips to her hand — and they do not
touch it — as if she were la Signora Duchessa,
instead of the mother who wished to take him in
her arms ? Altro ! I told him that I would go
and choose my faggots ; and I am here to ex-
plain his dolour. You must know, sir, that at
the Seminario, you have to preach to the other
chierichetti in the refectory, during supper. This
is to give you practice in delivering sermons.
And after you have preached, you go to your
place ; and, if it be necessary to make any re-
marks upon what you have said, the professors
will tell you all they think. Well, it was 'Cola's
turn to preach the night before he came home, and
he says that it was a sermon which had taken
all his life to write. He had learned it by heart;
and on arriving in the pulpit he repeated it, mov-
ing his hands and his body in a manner which he
had practised before window-panes and puddles.
When he had finished, the rector paid him com-
pliments, and two or three of the other professors

393

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

did the same. But when it came to the turn of
the decano, who is the senior student, he said
that the college ought to be very proud of hav-
ing produced an abbatino so clever as to be able,
in his first sermon, to invent and to proclaim six-
teen new and hitherto unheard-of heresies. And
'Cola, instead of cherishing a fine rage against
this nasty, jealous prig, with his mocking tongue,
has taken all blame to himself and is making
himself wretched. I told him that there was no
difficulty about heresies, if that was what he
wanted ; because I think that to do wrong is as
easy as eating, and that the difficulty is to keep
straight. But he says that he is a miserable sin-
ner, and that it is all his fault, for he cannot have
perfectly corresponded with his vocation, other-
wise he would have been saved this mortification.
Why, as for heresy, sir, I can tell you how a friar
in Rome was accused of preaching heresy, and
then you will know that it is not merely the
being accused of inventing heresies that makes
you guilty of that same.

" Well, sir, formerly there lived in Rome a cer-
tain friar called Fra Serafico. When he had lived
in the world he was of the Princes of Monte
Corvino ; but, at about the age of 'Cola, he
astonished everybody by giving up his rank,
and his riches, and his state, to become a Little
Brother of the Religion of Sanfrancesco. Now
the fraticelli of his convent were not quite able to
understand why a young man who had his ad-

394

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

vantages, should give them up as he did, prefer-
ring a shaved head and naked feet and to be a
beggar. And Fra Serafico, though he had the
best will in the world, did not make a good im-
pression on the other friars, because his manners
were different to theirs. He felt miserable with-
out a pocket-handkerchief-for-his-nose, for one
thing. And it was some time before the supe-
riors became certain that he had a true vocation ;
for he went about his duties with diligence and
humility, feeling so shy, because the things
around him were so strange, that he gained for
himself, among the other novices, the frightful
nickname of 'Dumbtongue.'

" And this went on until he had finished his
probation, and taken the habit and the vows.

" One day after that, Fra Guardiano, in order to
give him a good humiliation, told him to prepare
to preach a sermon before the convent at the
chapter that afternoon. Fra Serafico received
this command in silence, and, having kissed the
ground before Fra Guardiano, he went away to
his cell to study, and when the afternoon came
he stood up to preach.

" Then, sir, a very curious thing happened ; for
Fra Serafico preached, and, while he preached,
the faces of the other friars became set in a glare
of astonishment, and the eyes of Fra Guardiano
were almost starting out of his head by the time
the sermon was finished. Then there was silence
for a little while, and the friars looked one at

395

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

another, and nodded forward. It seemed that
they had been entertaining an angel unawares,
for this Dumbtongue, as they called him, had
turned out to be a perfect Golden-mouth, And
the friars were more than glad ; for, though they
were all good men and very holy, yet they had
no great preacher among them at that time, and
they thought it was a shame that a Religion,
whose business was to preach, should have no
man who could preach well, and at last they saw
a way out of the difficulty: 'For surely,' they
said, ' this Serafico speaks the words of Sam-
paolo himself, with the tongue of an angel'
After this he gave fervorini daily in the convent
church, till all the city was filled with his fame, and
at last he was named by Papa Ottoboni to preach
the Lent in the Church of Sancarlo al Corso.

" Of course you know very well, sir, that
Sathanas is disgusted to see the works of God
going on alvvay as easily as water runs out of
a turned-on tap ; and you know also that when
a good work seems to be thriving at its best,
then is the time the said Sathanas will choose to
try that he may upset it. And so he went to a
little Jesuit called Padre Tonto Pappagallo —
and, of course, I do not need to tell you that
the Jesuits arc not what you might call friendly
to the Franciscans — and he suggested to him
the evil thoughts, that it was bad for the Jesuits
to be beaten in preaching by the Franciscans,
and what a score it would be if a Jesuit were

396

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

to have the honour of catching Fra Serafico in
the act of preaching heresy. Padre Tonto, it
happened, had made a bad meditation that morn-
ing, having allowed his eyes to fix themselves
upon some of the alabaster angels who were
dangling their beautiful white legs over the
arches around the apsis, and his thoughts to
wander from his meditation to those things
from which every good priest flies with as much
haste as he would fly from the foul fiend appear-
ing in person. And so his mind was just like a
fertile field ; and, when Sathanas popped in his
suggestion, the seed immediately took root, and
before the morning was over it had burst into
blossom ; for this Padre Tonto skipped ofl* to the
Church of Sancarlo to hear the great preacher;
and when he saw the vast multitude all so intent
upon those golden words that, if an earthquake
had happened then and there, I believe no one
would have even blinked ; and when he heard
the sighs from the breasts of wicked men ; and
when he saw the tears rain down on women's
cheeks; then he envied Fra Serafico the power
to do these things : and so he began to listen to
the sermon, that he might catch the preacher
preaching heresy. Of course, while he was star-
ing about, he had not paid attention to the words
of gold, and the first sentence that caught his ear
when he did begin, indeed, to listen was this,
No one shall be crowjied unless he has contended
lawfully.

397

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

" Padre Tonto jumped for joy, and ran out of
the church. He was good friends with every-
body, for he had heard a heresy straight away.
' No one shall be crowned,' he said, ' that is, of
course, with the crown of glory which the gods
in paradise wear for ever — unless he has contended
laivfnUy — that is to say, as the martyrs did in
Colosseo. Pr-r-r-r-r-r, my dear Serafico ! And
what, then, becomes of all the holy bishops
and confessors, and of the virgins and penitents
and widows whom Holy Church has numbered
with the saints? These were not martyrs, nor
did they fight with beasts, like Sampaolo' (and
I cannot tell you the place, sir). ' If I were
Papa Ottoboni, Seraficone mio, I should burn
your body on Campo di Fiore to-morrow morn-
ing, and your damned soul in hell for ever and
the day after.' And saying these words and all
sorts of others like them, he ran off to the
Sant' UfBzio and made a mischief with much
diligence.

" Now Padre Tonto had a very good reputation
among superiors, and ladies, and was exceedingly
well-thought-of in Rome. Moreover, the accusa-
tion which he made appeared to be well founded.
So Fra Serafico was summoned, and this ques-
tion was put to him, — ' Did you, or did you not,
in your sermon preached in the Church of San-
carlo al Corso, on the first Monday in Lent, say,
No one shall be crowned tmless he has contended
lawfully ? ' And Fra Serafico replied that his

39S

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

questioner, who was the Grand Inquisitor him-
self, spoke like a book with large letters and
clasps of silver, for without a doubt he had used
those very words. The Grand Inquisitor re-
marked that confession of wrong done was
always good for the soul ; and he pointed out
to Fra Serafico the dreadful heresy of which he
had been guilty in uttering words meaning, if
they meant anything at all, That it was impos-
sible to get to Heaven unless yon suffered mar-
tyrdom. Then he told Fra Serafico, that as he
had made his heresy publick by preaching it to
all Rome, it would be necessary to make amends
also in the place of his crime, or else to let him-
self be burnt with fire on Campo di Fiore at
the next public holiday, both to atone for the
sin, and in order to encourage other people who
might feel it their business to imitate him by
preaching such atrocious and soul-slaughtering
heresy. And Fra Serafico answered that he
hoped to live and die a good and obedient son
of Holy Mother Church, and to submit his judg-
ment to hers in all things reasonable, except his
order ; therefore, it would give him much joy to
make public amends for his heresy at any time
or place which his eminence, in his wisdom,
might be pleased to appoint.

" The next day the people of Rome were called
by proclamation to the Church of Sancarlo al
Corso to see Fra Serafico's humiliation ; and be-
cause he was such a celebrated man there came

399

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

together all the noblest and most distinguished
persons in the city. Papa Ottoboni sat upon the
throne with the Princes Colonna and Orsini on
His right hand and on His left. All around there
were fifty scarlet cardinals, bishops by the score
in purple and green, friars grey, friars white,
friars black, monks by the hundred, and princes
and plain people like raindrops. When all had
taken their places, Fra Serafico w^as entered,
between two officers of the Sant' Uffizio having
their faces covered in the usual manner ; and
first he prostrated himself before La Sua Maesta
in the tabernacle, and then at the feet of Papa
Ottoboni, then he bowed from the waist to the
Sacred Conlege and to the prelates, and from the
shoulders to the rest ; and last of all he was led
into the pulpit from which he had proclaimed
his heresy. There he began to speak, using
these words : ' Most Holy Father, most eminent
and most reverend lords, my reverend brethren,
most illustrious princes, my dear children in
Jhesus Christ. I am brought here to-day on
account of preaching a vile and deadly heresy,
in this pulpit on the first Monday in Lent. That
heresy is contained in the following words : No
one shall be crowned unless he has contended
lawftdly. I freely confess, acknowledge, and
say, that I did, in real truth, use those words.
But before I proceed to abjure the heresy con-
tained therein, and to express with tears my
penitence for my hideous crime, I crave, my be-

400

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

loved children in Jhesus Christ, most illustrious
princes, my reverend brethren, most eminent and
most reverend lords, and, prostrate at Your feet,
Most Holy Father, indulgence for a few moments
while I relate a dream and a vision which came
to me during the night just past, which I spent
for the good of my soul upon the tender bosom
of the Sant' Uffizio.' Fra Serafico's face, as he
spoke, beamed with a beauty so unearthly, his
manner was so gracious, and the musick of his
golden voice so entrancing, that Papa Ottoboni,
making the ^ signs of iji the cross ijl granted
him the favour which he asked.

" The friar continued : * In my dream it ap-
peared to me that I was standing before the bar
of the Eternal Judge; and that there I was
accused by a certain Jesuit called Padre Tonto
Pappagallo of preaching heresy, on the first Mon-
day in Lent, in the Church of Sancarlo al Corso,
usins these words : No one shall be cvoivned
unless he has contended lawfully. And while I
waited there, Beato Fra Francesco himself came
and stood beside me. And the Judge of all
men looked upon me with wrath and anger,
asking whether I confessed my crime; and I,
wretched man that I am, in the presence of Him
Who knows all things, even the inmost secrets
of the heart, could do nothing else but acknow-
ledge that it was even so. Then the Padre
Eterno, Who, though terrible beyond all one
can conceive to evil-doers, is of a justice so
26 401

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

clear, so fine, so straight, that the crystal of
earth becomes as dull as mud, the keenness of a
diamond as blunt granite, and the shortest dis-
tance from here to there as crooked as the
curves in a serpent's tail — this just Judge, I say,
asked me, who am but a worm of the earth,
whether I had anything to allege in excuse for
my crime.

" ' And I, covered with confusion as with a gar-
ment, because of my many sins, replied, O
Clementissimo Signor Iddio, I have confessed
my crime ; and in palliation I can only say that,
when I was preparing my sermon, I took those
words from the writings of Sangregoriomagno.

" ' The Judge of all men ordered my guardian-
angel to write that down, and deigned to ask
whether I could say in what part of the writ-
ings of Sangregoriomagno this heresy would be
found, O Padre Celeste Iddio, I replied, the
heresy will be found in the 37th Homily of
Sangregoriomagno on the 14th chapter of the
Gospel of Sanluca Evangelista. Then I cov-
ered my face with my hands and waited for my
dreadful sentence : but Beato Fra Francesco
comforted me, and patted my shoulder with his
hand, all shining with the sacred stigmata; and
the Padre Eterno, speaking in a mild voice to
the Court of Heaven, said, iSltJllSl Dear
CHILDREN, THIS LITTLE BROTHER HAS BEEN
ACCUSED OF PREACHING A HERESY, AND HIS
HERESY IS SAID TO HAVE BEEN TAKEN FROM

402

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

THE WRITINGS OF SaNGREGORIO, DETTO MAGNO.

In this case, you will perceive that it is
NOT Our Little Brother who is a heretic,

BUT SaNGREGORIO, DETTO MaGNO, WHO WILL
therefore have THE GOODNESS TO PLACE
HIMSELF AT THE BAR ; FOR WE ARE DETER-
MINED TO SEARCH THIS MATTER TO ITS RE-
MOTEST END. l£ll^lSi Then Sangregorio, detto
Magno, was led by his angel-guardian from his
throne among the Doctors of the Church ; and
he came down to the bar and stood beside
me and Beato Fra Francesco, who whispered
in my ear. Cheer up, Little Brother, and hope
for the best ! And the Padre Eterno said,
^^^ SANGREGORIO (all short), THIS LIT-
TLE Brother has been accused before Us,
that on the first monday in lent, in the
Church of Sancarlo al Corso,*he preached

HERESY IN THE FOLLOWING WORDS: — No one
shall be crowjied unless he has co7itended law-
fidly. We have examined him, and he al-
leges THAT HE TOOK THOSE WORDS FROM THE

37TH Homily, which you have written upon

THE I4TH chapter of THE GOSPEL OF SaNLUCA
EVANGELISTA. WE DEMAND, THEREFORE, THAT
YOU SHOULD SAY, FIRST, WHETHER YOU ACK-
KNOWLEDGE YOURSELF TO HAVE WRITTEN THESE
WORDS ; AND, SECONDLY, IF YOU HAVE DONE SO,
WHAT EXCUSE YOU HAVE TO OFFER ? ^1^1^
Sangregoriomagno opened the book of his writ-
ings which, of course, he always carries with

403

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

him ; and he turned the pages with an anxious
finger.

"'Presently he looked up with a smile into
the Face of God and said, O Dio, Padre delle
misericordie, our Little Brother has spoken the
truth, for I have found the passage, and when I
shall have read it also, You will find the answer to
both questions which Your Condescension has put
me. So Sangregoriomagno read from his writ-
ings these words, But we cajtnot arrive at the great
reward wtless through great labours : wherefore,
that most excellent preacher, Sanipaolo, says, No
one shall be crowned unless he has contended law-
fully. The greatness of rewards, therefore, may
delight the mind, but does not take away the obliga-
tion of fighting for it first.

" ' Hm-m-m-M, said the Padre Eterno, THIS
BEGINS TO GROW INTERESTING ; FOR IT SEEMS,
DEAR CHILDREN, tjll^^ THAT OUR LITTLE

Brother here has quoted his heresy from
Sangregorio, detto Magno, and that San-
gregorio, detto Magno, in his turn quoted
it from Sampaolo, upon whom, therefore,

THE responsibility SEEMS TO REST. I^l^l]^

Call Sampaolo.

" ' So the seven angels blew into their trumpets
and summoned Sampaolo, who just then chanced
to be attending a meeting of the Apostolic Col-
lege ; and when he came into court his angel-
guardian led him to the bar, where he took his
place by the side of Sangregoriomagno ' — (the

404

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

god who made Christians of the English, sir, and
the chaunt, sir, and saw San Michele Arcangiolo
on the top of the Mola), — ' by the side of Beato
Fra Francesco, and of my wretched self

"'ijljjil^ Now, Sampaolo, said the Padre
Eterno, We have HERE A LITTLE GREY FRIAR
WHO HAS BEEN ACCUSED OF PREACHING HERESY
ON THE FIRST MONDAY IN LENT, IN THE ChURCH
OF SaNCARLO AL CORSO, in THESE WORDS, No
one shall be crowned unless he has contended law-
fully. And he informs Us that he has

QUOTED these WORDS FROM SaNGREGORIO,
DETTO MAGNO'S 37TH HOMILY ON THE I4TH
CHAPTER OF THE GOSPEL OF SaNLUCA EVAN-

gelista. We have examined Sangregorio,

DETTO MAGNO, WHO HAS POINTED OUT TO US

that he did indeed use these words, as our
Little Brother has said: but he also al-
leges THAT THEY ARE NOT HIS OWN WORDS, BUT

YOURS. The Court, therefore, would like

TO KNOW WHETHER YOU ADMIT HIS STATEMENT
TO BE TRUE.

" ' H-Enj^t^ Then Sampaolo's angel-guardian
handed to him the book containing all the letters
which he had written ; and after he had refreshed
his memory with a glance at this, the great apostle
replied, O Principio di ogni cosa, there is no
doubt that both this Little Brother and Sangre-
goriomagno are right, for I find in my second
letter to Santimoteo, chapter ii. verse 5, the fol-
lowing words: — Attd if a man also strive for

405

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

masteries, yet is he not crowned except he contend
lawfully.

'"lSll^l£l Well! the Padre Eterno said;
THIS IS A VERY SHOCKING STATE OF THINGS,
THAT YOU, SaMPAOLO, SHOULD PUBLISH HERE-
SIES IN THIS MANNER, AND LEAD MEN OF ALL
AGES INTO error! SaNGREGORIO, DETTO

Magno, taking the statement on your
authority, preaches heresy in his time;
and, a thousand years later, our little
Brother, innocently thinking gods of such

EMINENCE AS THE APOSTLE OF THE GENTILES

AND THE Apostle of the English to be

GOOD authorities, HAS PREACHED THE SAME
HERESY. You SEE, NOW, THAT IT IS IMPOS-
SIBLE TO KNOW WHAT THE END OF A LIE WILL
BE, WHEN ONCE IT HAS BEEN STARTED ON ITS
COURSE.

" ' But hear me, Sampaolo said, (he was a
very bold man, sir), ' for I venture to submit to
La Sua Maesta that the second letter which I wrote
to Santimoteo has been placed by Your Church
on earth on the list of the Canonical Books ;
which signifies that, when I wrote that letter, I
was inspired by the Third Person of the Maesta
Cceterna dell' Adorabile Trinita, and that there-
fore I was divinely protected from teaching error
in any shape or form !

"'Of COURSE IT DOES, the Padre Eterno re-
plied. The WORDS which you have written,
Sampaolo, in your second letter to Santi-

406

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

moteo, are not the words of a man, but the
Words of God Himself; and the matter
amounts to this, that our little brother

HERE, WHO TOOK THE WORDS FROM SaNGRE-
GORIO, DETTO MaGNO, WHO TOOK THEM FROM
YOU, WHO WERE DIVINELY INSPIRED TO WRITE
THEM, HAS NOT BEEN GUILTY OF HERESY AT ALL,

UNLESS God Himself can err. And who,
the Padre Eterno continued with indignation.
We should like to know, — who is the
ruffian who has taken up Our time with

this ridiculous and baseless CHARGE AGAINST

Our Little Brother?

" ' Somebody said that it was a Jesuit called
Padre Tonto Pappagallo, at which the Padre
Eterno sniffed and said, A JESUIT ! AND WHAT,
IN THE name of GOODNESS, IS THAT?

*' ' Madonna whispered that it was a son of
Santignazio of Loyola.

"' Where IS Santignazio of Loyola? said
the Padre Eterno.

" ' Now Santignazio, who had seen the way things
were going, and what a contemptible spectacle his
son was presenting, had hidden himself behind
a bush and was pretending to say his office very
diligently indeed. But he was soon found, and
brought into Court; and the Padre Eterno asked
him what he meant by allowing his spiritual
children to act in this way. But Santignazio
only groaned and said, O Potenza Infinita, all
my life long I tried to teach them to mind their

407

About the Heresy of Fra Serafico

own business, but in fact I have altogether failed
to make them listen to me.

"' That was my dream, Most Holy Father, most
eminent and most reverend lords, my reverend
brethren, most illustrious princes, my beloved
children in Jhesus Christ; and, since you have
been so gracious as to listen, I will now proceed
to a formal recantation of the vile and deadly
heresy which I am accused of having preached,
on the first Monday in Lent, in this Church of
Sancarlo al Corso.'

" But Papa Ottoboni arose from His throne,
and the cardinals, and bishops, and the princes,
and the people, and they all cried in a loud voice,
* Evviva, evviva, Bocca d'Oro, evviva, evviva.' "

408

christians Love one Another

About one Way in which Christians Love
ONE Another

" '^ T"ES," I said, "that 's a very good story,
^f Toto. And now I want to know
.A where you learned it."
"Well, sir," he replied, "that history was
told to me by Fra Leone of the Cappuccini.
Not that I wish you to think the Cappuccini and
Franciscans to be the same, — oh, not at all.
But, of course, you know better than that ; and
it is like their impertinence of bronze to pretend
that they are ; as they do ; for the Cappuccini
were not heard of even for hundreds of years after
Sanfrancesco had founded his Religion. And
the reason why they came to be made, was sim-
ply on account of the vain man Matteo Some-
thing-or-other-of-Low, who gave more thought
to his clothes than to the good of his soul, con-
sidering that the sleeves which were good enough
for Sanfrancesco, and the round tippet which
that most sweet god wore, did not suit his style
of beauty; wherefore he made himself a
brown habit instead of a grey one, with plain
sleeves to show the shape of his arms, and no
pockets in them, and a tippet not round, but

409

About one Way in which

pointed like the piece of flesh which there is
between my shoulders. And then, because there
are always plenty of men ready to run after
something new, he got together so many follow-
ers wishing to dress themselves like him, that
Papa de' Medicj preferred to give them permis-
sion to have their own way, rather than cause
them to become rebels against our Holy Mother
the Church, by making it difficult for them to be
obedient. You see the matter had really no
importance which was worth a schism."

I said that I knew all about that, but that I
did n't believe that religious men, whether they
were Franciscans, or sham ones like the Cappuc-
cini, or even Jesuits, would show such jealousy
and envy one of another as appeared in the story
of Fra Serafico.

" And there," said Toto, " I can assure you
that you are exactly wrong. I may tell you that
in every Religion there are two kinds of men —
the saints and sinners. Of course, the saints
always love one another as did Francesco and
Domenico ; and, by contrary, having submitted
themselves to the infernal dragon who always
drives all love out of the hearts of his slaves in-
flaming them with the undying fire of envy, the
sinners hate one another with a hatred like the
venom of vipers, and continually occupy them-
selves with all kinds of schemes by which they
may bring discredit upon their enemies, the
sinners of the other Religions. Why, I can tell

410

christians Love one Another

you a tale which is quite true, because I have
seen it, of how some Cappuccini — and you will
not ask me to say where their convent is — have
done a deed by which much shame will be
brought, some day, upon a house of Jesuits who
live in their neighbourhood.

" Well then, — there was a convent of Cappuc-
cini ; and, outside the grounds of the convent,
there was a small house, in which I lived with
my father and my mother and my brothers and
sisters ; and it was a very lonely place. And
about as far off as it would take you to say five
Paters, and five Aves, and five Glorias, there was
another house ; and there were perhaps three or
four cottages in sight ; and that is all : so it was
a very lonely place. But six miles away there
was a large college of Jesuits, up in the hills ;
and, when a Jesuit died, it was the custom to
bury him in the churchyard of these Cappuc-
cini.

" There was a man who came to live in the other
house, and he was not an old man, nor a young
man, but just between the two ; and, because
he felt lonely, he used to pay attentions to all the
ladies who came in his way when visiting this
celebrated convent of Cappuccini ; and our
difficulty was to know which one he was going
to marry. And there was one in particular who
appeared to these Cappuccini to be the one which
he ought to marry ; but her home was far away
in a large town. So one of the friars wrote to

411

About one Way in which

her parish priest to ask him what ought to be
done ; and the parish priest repHed ; ' Yes, you
must get her married as soon as possible ; * and,
soon after that, the respectable man married her
and brought her to the house in the lonely place
of which I speak. They lived there very quietly
for a little while ; and then his business called
the respectable man away from his house for a
few weeks. So he went ; and his wife remained
at home : and there was no one in the house with
her but a woman, her servant.

*' And presently, in the middle of a night, there
came a knocking at the door of the small house
where I was living with my father and mother
and my brothers and my sisters, and I heard this
knocking. For that night I was going to enjoy
myself in the orchard of the Cappuccini. So I
came downstairs in my shirt alone ; and because
I wished to keep secret what I was going to do,
I left the said shirt, rolled up in a bundle, under
the seat in the porch ; and I will tell you why:
I thought of two things ; the first thing was, that
it was a very rainy night, and if my mother in
the morning found my shirt wet, she would guess
I had been up to mischief, and, having told my
father, I should have solely stick for break-
fast ; and the second thing was, that if some
Cappuccino should be persuaded by an uneasy
divel to look out of his window to see a naked
boy capering about in the orchard, or in the
churchyard, he would say to himself that it was

412

Christians Love one Another

just a poor soul escaping from purgatory; and
then, having repeated a De Profundis, he would
go back to his bed. So just when I was creep-
ing across the yard, with the warm rain
pouring in torrents over the flesh of me,
there came this banging on the door of my
house ; and I skipped behind a tree, and waited.
Then my father opened the window of his room
upstairs, demanding what was the matter ; and
the voice of the servant of the respectable man,
replied that la Signora Pucci had been taken
very ill of a sudden, and that if my mother was
a Christian woman she would come to her assist-
ance. This servant spoke with a very thick
voice ; and as I did not think I should be amused
by staying behind my tree, I ran away, and pre-
sently enjoyed myself enough with the peaches
belonging to the said Cappuccini. When I
came home, I dried myself with a cloth, took
my shirt from under the seat in the porch, and
went to bed again.

" In the morning when I awoke, there was no
one to give us our breakfast ; for my father was
gone to his work, and my mother to the assist-
ance of the wife of the respectable man ; so I
was thankful enough that I had made so many
good meals during the night.

"All that day, and all the next night, and all
the day after that, was my mother away from
her home ; and I need not tell you that I began
to think that something very strange was happen-

413

About one Way in which

ing, of which I ought to know ; so I waited here,
and I waited there, and I put a question of one
kind to this, and a question of another kind to
that ; and during the night, after my father had
seen me go to bed, I rose, and left my shirt in
the porch as before, not because it was raining
now, but because I liked it, as well as for the
second reason ; and I wandered about quite
naked and happy and free " — (here he tossed his
arms, and threw up his legs, and wriggled all
over in an indescribable manner), — "dodging
behind trees and bushes, from my father's house
to the house of the respectable man, and to the
churchyard of the said convent of Cappuccini ;
and, during that night, I saw many curious
things ; which, with the answers given to the
questions that I had been asking, and other odds
and ends, which, either I knew, or which I had
seen with my eyes, made me able to know ex-
actly what this mystery was.

" Now I ought to have told you this : — that
a week before, a priest of the Jesuit College, of
which I have already spoken, had been buried
in the convent churchyard; also that he was
confessor of the wife of the respectable man, and
a priest whom she held in the very greatest hon-
our, and he was called Padre Guilhelmo Siretto.
He was a very holy man indeed, whom every-
body venerated ; for the Signor Iddio had made
him live sixty-seven long years in order that he
might add to the many good deeds which in his

414

christians Love one Another

long life he had done. I should like you to
try to remember this, because now I must go to
another part of the story.

" After the servant of the respectable man had
told my father that her mistress was ill, my
mother rose from her bed and went, at once, to
the house of the sick person. Arrived there, she
found la Signora Pucci fallen upon the floor in
greatest pain ; and, being a woman herself, she
knew, with a single stroke of her eye, what was
the matter.

" Now the servant of the respectable man, who
had accompanied my mother, was a tipsy wench,
and useless. Therefore my mother, who is the
best of all women living, (perhaps equal to
Beatrice), made la Signora Pucci as comfortable
as possible at that time ; went into the stable ;
put a horse into the cart; and, having driven for
three miles to the nearest town, brought back a
doctor with her as the day was breaking.

" The sick woman was put to bed, and the
doctor gave my mother directions as to what was
to be done during his absence ; for he said he
must go home now to finish his night's rest, and
in the morning he had his patients to see; but,
in the afternoon, he would come again ; and
then, perhaps, something would happen. But
my mother told him that on no account she would
consent to be left alone in the house with la Sig-
nora Pucci, because she perceived that something
most astonishing was to happen. The doctor

415

About one Way in which

replied that he would not stay, because he could
not; and, that, if my mother was not there to
assist the sick woman in her trouble, she might
die. But my mother would by no means be per-
suaded, and in the end she conquered ; and the
doctor stayed, and they waited all through the
night, and the next morning before noon there
came a new baby into that house ; and la Signora
Pucci was so astonished that she really nearly
died ; and as for the baby, he did die, after a
half-hour of this world.

" Then the sick woman became mad ; and cried
in delirium that she would not have it known to
the respectable man, her husband, that a new
baby had come into that house ; so my mother
went for the Fra Guardiano of these Cappuccini,
telling him all that she knew, how she herself had
baptised the baby, by the name Angelo, seeing
him to be in the article of death, and that, there-
fore, he must be buried in the churchyard ; also
how that his mother, la Signora Pucci, demanded
to have this done secretly, and that the grave
should be made with Padre Guilhelmo, of whom
I have just spoken, who was a holy man with
whom any person might be glad to be buried.
Upon this Fra Guardiano replied that it would be
as easy as eating; and he directed my mother,
having put the dead baby into a box, to take the
said box under her cloak, at midnight, to the
grave of Padre Guilhelmo.

*' So she did as she was told, putting the dead

416

Christians Love one Another

baby Angelo into a wooden box in which rice had
been, and cutting a cross upon the Hd so that
San Michele Arcangiolo should know there was
a Christian inside ; and at midnight she was there,
at the grave of Padre Guilhelmo. And, of course,
I need not tell you that there was a naked boy
hidden in a cedar-tree, over her head, lying flat
with his breast upon a thick branch which he
held between his thighs and with his arms, and
looking right down upon the grave. Then there
came out of the convent Fra Giovannone, Fra
Lorenzo, Fra Sebastiano, and Fra Guilhelmo : and
if I had not remembered that a naked boy in a
cedar-tree was not one of the things which you
are unable to do without at a midnight funeral, I
should have laughed ; because these friars, coming
out of their convent without candles, fell over
the crosses on the graves, and said words which
friars do not say in their offices. They brought
two spades and a bucket of holy water ; and,
when they came to the grave of the Jesuit Padre,
Fra Sebastiano and Fra Guilhelmo dug about
two cubits of a hole there ; then my mother gave
them the box from underneath her cloak, and they
put it in the earth ; and having sprinkled it with
holy water, they covered it up, made the grave
look as it had looked before, as best they could
in that dim light, and then returned to their
convent, all the time saying no word aloud.

" Then my mother went back to the house of la
Signora Pucci, and a boy without clothes followed
27 411

About one Way in which

her there. For one hour after, I ran backwards
and forwards, secretly, between the convent and
the house of the respectable man ; but, finding
that nothing happened, I went to my bed.

" About the Ave Maria of the day after this,
my mother returned to her house, saying that the
doctor had brought a nurse to la Signora Pucci,
and that the respectable man her husband also
was coming back, so there was nothing more for
her to do. Then she swooned with weariness, for
she was tired — but, tired ; but after resting two
days while I, and my sisters, and my brothers,
kept the house clean and tidy, she recovered.

" And that is all the tale, sir.

" Now I think you will understand that these
Cappuccini, unless indeed they are entirely fools
of the most stupid (and that they may be), have
been urged on by envy of the Jesuit fathers to
lay the beginnings of a plot which, some day,
will cause a great scandal. You must see that
they could not help the coming of the new baby,
Angelo, to the house of the respectable man ;
and it is not for that that I blame them. You
must see that when the new baby, Angelo, was
come, and had died a good Christian, there was
nothing else for them to do but to bury him in
their churchyard, and secretly, to defend la
Signora Pucci from shame; and after all, you
must see that there are paces upon paces upon
paces of ground in that churchyard, where this
dead Christian baby, Angelo, could have been

418

christians Love one Another

buried by himself, secretly; and that it is purely
abominable to have put him into the grave of a
Jesuit, which, being opened, as it may at any
time — God knows when, or why, but it is quite
likely — will bring a great dishonour, and a foul
blot, upon the sons of Santignazio of Loyola."
I said that I saw.

From London^ in my study ^ on the Eve of Saint George
the Martyr, Protector of the Kingdom, MDCCCC.

419

" Improbc facit, qui,
in alieno libro,
ingeniosus estr

Mart.
421

COMEDIES AND ERRORS

By HENRY HARLAND

Second Edition

Mr. Harland has clearly thought out a form. ... He has mastered a
method, and learned how to paint. . . . His art is all alive with felicities
and delicacies. . . . He is lost in the vision, all whimsical and picturesque,
of palace secrets, rulers and pretenders and ministers, of bewilderingly light
comedy in undiscoverable Balkan States, Bohemias of the seaboard ; in the
heavy, many-voiced air cf the old Roman streets and of the high Roman
saloons, where cardinals are part of the furniture ; in the hum of prodigious
Paris, heard in corners of old cafes j in the sense of the deep English back-
ground, as much as that of any of these. Most of his situations are treated
in the first person ; and as they skip across frontiers, and pop up in parks
and palaces, they give us the impression that, all suffused with youth as the
whole thing seems, it is the play of a memory that has had half a dozen
lives. Nothing is more charming in it than the reverberation of the old
delicate, sociable France that the author loves most of all to conjure up,
and that fills the exquisite little picture cf "Rooms" with an odour of
feint lavender in wonderful bowls and a rustic of ancient silk on polished
floors. — Mr. Henry James, in an article on Mr. Harland's work in The
Fortnightly Rcvieiv.

A kind of younger Pater, emancipated fi-om those cramping academic
bonds which occasionally injured Mr. Pater's work. Mr. Harland is
younger, fi-eer, with juvenile spirits and a happy keenness and interest in
life. He is more of a creator and less of a critic ; perhaps some day he will
even achieve the same kind of literary distinction as that which adorned his
older rival. — Mr. W. L. Courtney, in Daily Telegraph.

Indubitably he has given to the short-story form a shapeliness, a distinc-
tion of contour, a delicacy in detail, an effective value, and, above all, an
economic simplicity, beyond the performance of others. He has carried
the technique of a particular art further than any of his contemporaries. —
Academy.

This reviewer cannot call to mind the name of any one writing in English
who works in tJie same medium in which Mr. Harland does supremely
well. — Daily Chronicle.

Mr. Henry Harland charms, and at times even enchants you with his
wit and humour and the dainty delicacy and grace of his portraiture in
" Comedies and Errors." — Truth.

JOHN LANE, Publisher, London Ssf New York

COMEDIES AND ERRORS

By HENRY HARLAND

Some American Press Opinions

What Mr. Harland has done definitely for the art of the short story is
to enlarge its scope, to give it fulness and richness, to link the incident
with the rest of life, and to convert what has been feared as embarrassing
decoration into essential substance. . . . Mr. Harland's temperament
is gay enough to wrestle with the most painful experience, and to declare
that, after all, life is good, pain transient, and pleasure of one sort or an-
other always waiting for recognition. — The Nation.

These " Comedies and Errors " reveal the instinct of the true artist, the
sense of form, the compression and restraint, the lightness of touch and the
deft handling of incident that characterize the short stories of the most famous
practitioners. Air. Harland has not gone to the school cf the best French-
men in -vain, and has at last sboivn himself capable of luorkmanship so deli-
cate that lue have not the heart to say aught but praise concerning it. — The
Dial.

GREY ROSES

By HENRY HARLAND

Exceedingly pleasant to read. You close the book with a feeling that
you have met a host of charming people. "Castles near Spain" come*
near to being a perfect thing of its idnd. — Pall Mall Gazette.

They are charming stories, simple, full of freshness, with a good deal of
delicate wit, both in the imagining and in the telling. The last story of
the book, in spite cf improbabilities quite tremendous, is a delightful story.
He has realised better than any one else the specialised character of the
short story and how it should be written. — Daily Chronicle.

Really delightful. "Castles near Spain" is as near perfection as it
could well be. — Spectator.

"Castles near Spain" as a fantastic love episode is simply inimitable,
and "Mercedes" is instinct with a pretty humour and childlike tender-
ness that render it peculiarly, nay, uriiquely fascinating. " Grey Roses "
are entitled to rank among the choicest flowers of the realms of romance. —
Daily Telegraph.

Never before has the strange, we might almost say the weird, fascination
of the Bohemianism of the Latin Quarter been so well depicted. — IFhitehall
Review.

JOHN LANE, Publisher, London ^ New York

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

BY JAMES BRYCE

THE STORY OF A PLOUGHBOY. An Autobiography.

Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* As will be seen from the title of its parts—" The Farm," " The Mansion,"
" The Cottage "—the characters whose passions and interests make the plot o{ this
story are drawn from the households ol the Labourer, the Farmer and the Squire;
the book is therefore an attempt to present country life in all its important
aspects. In this, again, it differs from all other novels of the soil in our own or
perhaps in any language: its author writes not from book-knowledge or hearsay or
even observation, but from experience. He has lived what he describes, and under
the power of his realism readers will feel that they are not so much glancing
over printed pages as mixing with living men and women. But the story has
interest for others than the ordinary novel-reader. It appeals as strongly to the
many earnest minds that are now concerned with the questions of Land and
Industrial Reform. To such its very faithfulness to life will suggest answers
startling, perhaps, but certainly arresting.

BY WILLIAM CAINE.

HOFFMANN'S CHANCE. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*»* This is a realistic story of the stage which bears the obvious impress of
truth. Michael Hoffman is a struggling musician of tremendous talent. He is
introduced to Orde, a very rich dillettante. They collaborate in a blend of comic
opera and musical comedy. Their music is clever and tuneful, but the libretto,
aJas, brings them to grief. There is plenty of feminine interest in the book and
some clever sketches of " women who do things."

Morning Post—" The most considerable piece of work Mr. Caine has yet given
iw. ' Hoffman's Chance ' would have been worth writing merely for the presenta-
tion of Orde the Ass a-d Psyche the Cat — especially the actress, whose portraiture
is one of the most vivid and effective presentatione of cattiness that has ever come
our way."

BY DANIEL CHAUCER.

THE SIMPLE LIFE, LIMITED. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*»* This novel has a very decided quality of satire which is inspired by tho
oonventioir of the unconventional. Evidently Mr. Chaucer knows the Simple Lifo
from the inside, and his reflections will both amuse and amaze those who know it
only from casual allusions. Many well-known figures will be recognized, though not
in all cases under their proper names, and, as in the case of Mr. Mallock's " New
Republic," Society will be busy dotting the " i's " and crossing the " t's."

THE NEW HUMPTY DUMPTY Crown 8vo. 6,f-

Globe — " Brilliant entertainment . . . there is an extraordinary feeling lor
plot and incident, and an irresistible sense of satiric humour."

Pall Mall Gazette—" The pseudonymous author of ' The Simple Life ' gives
us in 'The New Hurapty Dumpty ' a volume still more brilliant; so brilliant is
it, with such a range of first-class experience, that there will be keen curiosity to
know who has written these works."

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY MAUD CRUTTWELL.

FIRE AND FROST. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* Fire is an Egyptian Prince and Frost is an English girl living in Florence.
The impetuous and passionate temperament of the Oriental is matched against
the steadfast rational nature of the heroine. The uncompromising desire of the
former is to make the English girl his wife, and the circumstances under which
she is reluctantly brought to consent are original but entirely convincing. Thence-
forth the struggle is on the woman's part, as she finds herself pitted against the
fierce vacillating will of her husband, and the jealous intrigues of a mercenary
little Florentine marchesa— a character brilliantly drawn— ar;d her satellites. The
outcome of this battle of temperaments is deeply interestii.g. The natures ol
East and West in conflict have been employed as material for fiction already,
but it can safely be said that never have the dramatic possibilities of the subject
been treated with such judgment as in this novel. The author makes full use
of her power of characterization in conveying the action ol the story to the reader
with a force only to be found in the work of a really accomplished writer.

BY SIDNEY DARK.

THE MAN WHO WOULD NOT BE KING. A Novel.

Crown 8vo. 6/-

" It is only when a man does things for which he is not intended that his
exx)eriences become really interesting. For example, supposing that Sir Herbert
Tree had gone to the South Polar region? instead of Sir Ernest Shackleton, what
a delightful book would have resulted! So with me. Although I cannot claim
any moral lor my story it may not be without amusement. The adventures of a
Muare xieg in a round hole are always delightful, except, perhaps, to the square
peg.

" So I start to relate the life of Fennimore Slavington, who had greatness
thrust upon him much against his will and much to the discomfort ol himself and
many others."— Extract from the Prologue.

BY MARION FOX.

THE BOUNTIFUL HOUR. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Author of "The Hand of the North."

*,* This is the story oi a girl's life in the final years of the eighteenth century,
the background of the plot lying around Olney in the time of Cowper and Newton,
with the contrasted atmosphere of London in the days of the Prince Regent. With
all of these the heroine, Charlotte Hume, comes in contact.

The shadow which is cast across the plot is the outcome of a promise, given
by Howard Luttrell in his younger days to a woman ol easy reputation, of whom
he soon tired, but to whom he had passed his word that whilst she lived he would
never marry. In later life he meets Charlotte Hutne, with whom, almost
unconsciously, he falls in love. On awakening fully to the fact, and finding the
other woman still living, he brings the solving of the problem to the girl herself.
Luttrell is the last of a long line ol men and women, who, whatever they may or
may not have done, never broke their word. The way in which Charlotte cuts the
knot must be left to the patience of the reader to find out.

The book does not pretend to being an historical novel, but a portrayal of
certain aspects of middle-class life some hundred or more years ago.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
THE WORKS OF ANATOLE FRANCE, in English.

Edited by Frederic Chapman. Demy 8vo. 6/^

THE OPINIONS OF JEROME COIGNARD. A Translation by

Mrs. Wilfrid Jackson.
ON LIFE AND LETTERS. A Translation by A. W. Evans.

Vols. 2, 3 & 4.
THE GODS ARE ATHIRST. A Translation by Alfred Allinson.

Already Published.
MY FRIEND'S BOOK. A Translation by J. Lewis May.

JOCASTA AND THE FAMISHED CAT. A Translation by

Mrs. Farley.
THE ASPERATIONS OF JEAN SERVIEN. A Translation by

Alfred Allinson.
AT THE SIGN OF THE REINE PEDAUQUE. A Translation

by Mrs. Wilfrid Jackson.
ON LIFE AND LETTERS. Vol. i.

THE RED LILY. A Translation by Winifred Stephens.
MOTHER OF PEARL. A Translation by the Editor.

THE CRIME OF SYLVESTRE BONNARD. A Translation by

Lafcadio Hearn.
THE GARDEN OF EPICURUS. A Translation by Alfred

Allinson.
THE WELL OF ST. CLARE. A Translation by Alfred Allinson.

BALTHASAR. A Translation by Mrs. John Lane.

THAIS. A Translation by Robert B. Douglas.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

THE WORKS OF ANATOLE FRANCE, in English— continued.
THE WHITE STONE. A Translation by C. E. Roche.
PENGUIN ISLAND. A Translation by A. W, Evans.
THE iVIERRIE TALES OF JACQUES TOURNEBROCHE.

A Translation by Alfred Allinson.
THE ELM TREE ON THE MALL. A Translation by M. P.

WiLLCOCKS.

THE WICKER-WORK WOMAN. A Translation by M. P.

WiLLCOCKS.

BY JOHN GORE.

THE BARMECIDE'S FEAST. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

With Illustrations by Arthur Penn.
*,* A book which will delight lovers ol humour.
Daily News and Leader-" A book which ME. BALFOUR WOULD ENJOY."

BY A. R. GORING-THOMAS.

MRS. GRAMERCY PARK. Crown 8vo. 6/-

World—" In the language ol the heroine herself, this, her story, is delightluUy
' bright and cuie.' "

Obnervei — " Fresh and amusing."

THE LASS WITH THE DELICATE AIR. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*** In his new novel Mr. Goring-Thomas relates the history of a young girl
whose beautilul lace is a mask that allures. Round the history of " The La.ss with
the Delicate Air" is woven the story of the Hicks family. Mrs. Hicks keeps a
lodging house in Chelsea, and has theatrical ambitions. The author has keen
powers of observation and a faculty ol " getting inside a woman's mind " and the
same witty dialogue that was so commented upon in " Mrs. Gramercy-Park " ia
again seen in the new work. The scene of the book is laid partly in lioadon and
partly in Paris.

WAYWARD FEET. Crown Svo. 6/-

♦«• This book is a departure on the part of Mr. Goring-Thomas. and ia a
brilliant piece of work. TUe scene of the book alternates between St. Wulphy-
turmer a mediaeval fortified town in the Pas-de-Calais, and Paris. The two
heroines Toinette Moreau and Joan Dombray, both come from St. Wulphy and
both go to Paris. Their histories contrive a sharp contrast: one being by character
sweet, yielding and affectionate, while the other is combative, rebellious and
intellectual. The character drawing, as in Mr. Goring-Thomas' other books, is
notably clear and interesting. His already celebrated wit, bis original humour,
and insight into character again illuminate his latest book. The history of Joaa
Dombray, especially, ia a strong, original, and striking piece of work.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY HENRY HARLAND.

THE CARDINAL'S SNUFF BOX. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Illustrated by G. C. Wilmhurst. 165th. Thousand.

Academy—" The drawings axe all excellent in style and really illustrative of
the tale."

Saturday Review—" Wholly delightful."
Pall Mali Gazette—" Dainty and delicious."
Times—" A book among a thousand."
Spectator — " A charming romaaice."

MY FRIEND PROSPERO. Crown 8vo. Third Edition. 6/-

Times — " There is no denying the charm of the work, the delicacy and
fragrancy of the style, the sunny play of the dialogue, the vivacity ol the wit, and
the graceful flight of the fancy."

Wurld—" The reading of it is a pleasure rare and unalloyed."

THE LADY PARAMOUNT. Crown 8vo. 55th Thousand. 6/-

Times—" A fantastic, delightful love-idyll."

Spectatoi — " A roseate romance without a crumpled rose leaf."

Daily Mail—" Charming, dainty, delightful."

COMEDIES AND ERRORS. Crown Svo. Third Edition. 6/-

Mr. Henry James, in Fortnightly Review—" Mr. Harland has clearly thought
cut a form. . . . He has mastered a method and learned how to paint. . . . His
art is all alive with felicities and delicacies."

GREY ROSES. Crown Svo. Fourth Edition. 3/6 net

Daily Telegraph— "' Grey Roses' are entitled to rank among the choicest
flowers of the realms of romance."

Spectator—" Really delightful. ' Castles near Spain ' is as near perfection as it
could well be."

Daily Chronicle—" Charming stories, simple, full of freshness."

MADEMOISELLE MISS. Crown Svo. Third Edition. 3/6

Speaker—" All through the book we are pleased and entertained."
Bookman—" An interesting collection ol early work. In it may be noted the
undoubted delicacy and strength of Mj. Harland's manner."

BY CROSBY HEATH.

HENRIETTA TAKING NOTES. Crown Svo. 6/-

*,* Henrietta is the eleven year old daughter of a dramatic critic, who. with
her delightful younger brother, Cyrus, are worthy of a pld<;e beside " Helen's
Babies" or "Elizabeth's Children." They cause the "Olympians" many anxious
and anguished moments, yet their pranks are forgiven because of the endearing
charm of their generous natures. Miss Heath writes of children with the skill that
comes of a thorough luderslanding of the child mind.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY BERTAL HEENEY.

PICKANOCK : A Tale of Settlement Days in Olden Canada.

Crown 8vo. 6/-

BY MURIEL HINE.

APRIL PANHASARD. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*** Lady Essendine is reluctantly compelled to divorce her uniaithful husband,
who lias developed into a dipsomaniac. She is naturally distressed by the ecajidal
her action carries, and flies to Coddle-in-the-Dale, where she hopes to hide her
identity under the name of April Panhasard— a name chosen casually from the
titles of three novels at a railway station bookstall, " Young April," " Peter Pan,"
"The Hazard of the Die." In the quiet village she moves a sweet and gracious
figure, serenely indifferent to the curiosity of those who try to penetrate the
mystery that surrounds her. Only Boris Majendie, who poses as her cousin, ia
in her confidence. Her quiet is speedily disturbed. A young American, to whom
she is strangely drawn, makes her a proposal of marriage. Boris runs more than
a little wild, although he leaves her his larger devotion. Finally her divorced
husband turns up, and she is left in an intensely compromising situation, for the
necessary six months have not yet elapsed to "make the decree absolute. How she
frees herself from this curious tangle must be left for the reader to find out.

The book is alive with incident, but it has the rare quality of restraint, which
prevents it from ever merging into the melodramatic, and the characters are all
drawn with rare artistic skill.

HALF IN EARNEST. Second Edition. Crown 8vo 6/-

*** Derrick Kilmarney, the secretary of a famous politician, is a young man
with the disposition to take the best that life offers him, and shirk the respon-
sibilities. He falls in love with a girl, but shudders at the idea of the bondage of
marriage. His love is emancipated, unfettered. He is ambitious, politically,
allows himself to become entangled with his chief's wife, end is too indolent to
break with her even in justice to the girl he loves. Eventually there comes a
time when all the threads have to be gathered together, when love has to be
weighed with ambition, and in Kilmarney's case the denounement is unexpected
and startling.

EARTH. Second Edition. Crown Svo. 6/-

*,* Muriel Hine's previous novel " Halt in Earnest " achieved a considerable
success, " Earth " seems likely to achieve a greater. The story deals with the
awakening of a pure young girl to the realities of life and what they mean. With
a proper understanding of human nature comes sympathy: to know all is to pardon
all. " Earth " is a society novel with a society atmosphere that is convincing.

BY ADELAIDE HOLT.

OUTSIDE THE ARK. Crown Svo. 6/-

*t* This is an attractively told story with many outstanding features. Hugh
Inskip, a prominent man of letters, marries a young wife, whom he does not
understand, because she is continually posing and never her natural self. She
is aV^o jealous of the beautiful but incapacitated actress, Margaret Stair, for whom
Inskip is writing a play, and makes use of an ingenious and shady trick to spy
upon her husband's motives. But Iris, the young wife, is not entirely a malignant
figure, for her frail beauty and helplessness make a tender appeal for sympathy.
The scene of the novel changes at times from the hub of London life to the
peaceful quiet of a country vicarage, whither the father of Iris-a charming
scholar— lets fall honeyed words of wisdom and advice or gently chides his over-
zealous curate. The author has a strong sense of humour, as well as a great power
of dramatic '.reseutment.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

BY ADELAIDE UOLl—cotithiue.i.

THE VALLEY OF REGRET. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*t* Betty Feverell's childhood is full of pathos. For the best reason in the
world she is unable to capture the sympathy of her supix>sed father, and runs
away to make an imprudent marriage with a very charming but rather weak young
man who is addicted to " drink." Fastidious to a degree, this failing does not
seem to spoil the gentleness and refinement of his disposition, until, enraged by an
insult to his wife, he kills a man in a fit of alcoholic frenzy. With her husband
sentenced to penal servitude for seven years, the problem of Betty's life is full of
difficulty. After five years a second man, John Earle, wins her love, knowing
little or nothing of the obstacles in the way of its fulfilment. Fina.lly, news
arrives that the convict will return in a few weeks, and the story ends suddenly
and unexpectedly. This is a delightful novel. It has incident and freshness; and
the directness of the style gives the book a remarkably artistic impression of life.

BY MRS. JOHN LANE.

KITWYK. Crown 8vo. 6/-

A Story with numerous illustrations by Howard Pyle
Albert Sterner and George Wharton Edward.s.

Tiines — " Mrs. Lane has succeeded to admiration, and chiefly by reason ol
being so much interested in her theme that she makes no conscious effort to
please. . . . Everyone who seeks to be diverted will read ' Kitwyk ' for its
obvious qualities of entertainment."

THE CHAMPVGNE STANDARD. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Morning Post—" The author's champagne overflows with witty sayings too
numerous to recite."

Pall Mall Gazette — " Mrs. Lane's papers on our social manners and foibles are
the most entertaining, the kindest and the truest that have been offered lis for a
long time. . . . The book shows an airy philosophy that will render it of service
to the social student."

ACCORDING TO MARIA. Crown Svo. 6/-

Daily Chronicle— " This, delightM novel, sparkling with humour. . . . Maria's
world is real. . . . Mrs. Lane is remarkably true to life in that world. . . . Maria
is priceless, and Mrs. Lane is a satirist whose life may be indefatigably joyous in
satiric art. For her eyes harvest the little absurdities, and her hand makes
sheaves of them. . . . Thackeray might have made such sheaves if he had been
a woman."

BALTHASAR AND OTHER STORIES. Crown Svo. 6/-

Translated by Mrs. John Lane from the French of Anatcle France

Daily Graphic—" The original charm and distinction oi the author's style has
survived the difficult ordeal of appearing in another language. . . . ' The Cure's
Mignonette ' is as perfect in itself as some little delicate flower."

TALK O' THE TOWN. Crown Svo. 6/-

*,t* Mrs. John Lane's new book, " Talk of the Town," is on the same lines
a.s " The Champagne Standard," that sparkling and brilliantly witty study of
English and American life, and has the delightful and refreshing humour
we have a right to expect of the author of " According to Maria," and that power
of observation and keen insight into everyday lite which made " The Champagne
Standard " one of the most successful and one of the most quoted books of the
season, both in England and America."

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY STEPHEN LEACOCK.

LITERARY LAPSES. Third Edition. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

Spectator--" This book is a happy example of the way in which the double
life can be lived blamelessly and to the great advantage of the community. The
book fairly entitles Mr. Leacock to be considered not only a humourist but a
benefactor. The contents should appeal to English readers with the double virtue
that attaches to work which is at once new and richly humorous."

NONSENSE NOVELS. Third Edition. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net
Pall Mall Gazette—" He certainly bids fair to rival the immortal Lewis Carroll."
Punch—" Delightful spontaneity. There is genuine gold here on every page."

Daily Graphic—" ' Guido, the Gimlet of Ghent ' set us in a roar. His last tale.
' The Asbestos Man,' is the best."

SUNSHINE SKETCHES OF A LITTLE TOWN. Fourth Edition

Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

Evening Standard—" We have never laughed more often."

Canada—" A whole storehouse of sunshine. Of the same brand as ' Literary
Lapses ' and ' Nonsense Novels." It is the surest recipe for enjoying a happy
holiday."

Daily Telegraph—" Irresistibly comical. Mr. Leacock strikes us as a sort ol
Americanised W. W. Jacobs. Like the English humorist, the Canadian one has
a delightfully fresh and amusing way of putting things."

Time.<—" His real hard work— for which no conceivable emolument would be
a fitting reward— is distilling .sunshine. This new book is full of it— the sunshine
ol humour, the thin keen sunshine of irony, the mellow evening sunshine of
sentiment."

BY W. J. LOCKE.

STELLA MARIS. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

With 8 Illustrations by Frank Wiles.

*»* Mr. Locke's astonishing fertility of invention has never yet been seen to
so great advantage as in this story. It has all the picturesque bravery of the
"Beloved Vagabond," all the tender sentiment of "Marcus Ordeyne," all the
quixotic spirit of " Clementina Wing." And yet it is like none of these. Infinitely
tender, infinitely impressive, is the story of Stella Maris, the wonder child, who
has never moved from her couch, who receives her impressions ol the outside
world from her gentle spirit and the gold-clad tales of her loving friends and the
secrets ol the seagulls that flit so near her window. And then Stella, grown to
a woman, recovers; to take her place, not in the world of beauty she had pictured
from the stillness ol her couch, but the world of men and women.

From the first page the reader falls under a spell. For all its wistful delicacy
of texture Mr. Locke's humanity, broad and strong, vibrates with terror just as
it soothea with its sense ol peace. This is Mr. Locke's finest achievemeat.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

BY W. J. LQCKE— continued.

THE JOYOUS ADVENTURES OF ARISTIDE PUJOL. A Novel

Crown 8vo. 6/-

With Illustrations by Alec Bull.

Daily Telegraph—" In ' Aristide Pujol ' Mr. W. J. Locke has given lile to oBe
oi the most lascinating creatures in modern fiction."

'Morning Post — " We do not know when Mr. Locke was more happily inspired."

* DERELICTS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Daily Chronicle — " Mr. Locke tells his story in a very true, very moving, and
very noble book. II anyone can read the last chapter with dry eyes we shall be
surprised. 'Derelicts' is an impressive and important book."

Morning Pout—" Mr. Locke's clever novel. One of the most effective storieg
that have appeared lor some time past."

*IDOLS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Daily Telegraph— " A brilliantly written and eminently readable book."
Daily Mail—" One of the most distinguished novels of the present book seaaon."
Punch—" The Baron strongly recommends Mr. W. J. Locke's ' Idols ' to all

novel readers. It is well written. No time is wasted in superfluous descriptions;

there is no fine writing for fine writing's sake, but the story will absorb the

leader. ... It is a novel that, once taken up, cannot willingly be put down

until finished."

*A STUDY IN SHADOWS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Daily Chronicl* — " Mr. Locke has achieved a distinct success in this novel
He has struck many emotional chords and struck them all with a firm »ure hand."

Athenceum—" The character-drawing is distinctly good. All the persoaages
stand well defined with strongly marked individualities."

*THE WHITE DOVE. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Times—" An interesting story, full of dramatic scenes."

Morning Post—" An interesting story. The characters are strongly conceived
and vividly presented, and the dramatic moments are powerfully realised."

♦THE USURPER. Crown 8vo. 6/-

World—" This quite uncommon novel."

Spectator—" Character and plot are most ingeniously wrought, and the conclu-
sion, when it comes, is fully satisfying."
Times—" An impressive romance."

THE DEMAGOGUE AND LADY PHAYRE. Cr. 8vo. 3/6

*AT THE GATE OF SAMARIA. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Daily Chronicle—" The heroine of this clever story attracts our interest. . . .
She is a clever and subtle study. . . . We congratulate Mr. Locke."

Morning Poet-" A cleverly written tale . . . the author's pictures ot
Bohemian lile are bright and graphic."

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

BY W. J. LOCKE— conti mud.

WHERE LOVE IS. Crown 8vo. 6/- ;

Mr. James Douglas, in Star—" I do not often praise a book with this
exultant gusto, but it gave me so much spiritual stimulus and moral pleasure that
I feel bound to snatch the additional delight of commending it to those readers
who long for a, novel that is a piece of literature as well as a piece of life."

Standard—" A brilliant piece of work."

Times— " The author has the true gift; his people are alive."

*THE MORALS OF MARCUS ORDEYNE. Cr. 8vo. 6/-

Mr. C. K. Shorter, in Sphere—" A book which has just delighted my heart."
Truth—" Mr. Locke's new^ novel is one of the best artistic pieces of work I
have met with for many a day."

Daily Chronicle-" Mr. Locke succeeds, indeed, in every crisis of this most
original story."

THE BELOVED VAGABOND. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Truth—" Certainly it is the most brilliant piece of work Mr. Locke has done."
Evening Standard—" Mr. Locke can hardly fail to write beautifully. He haa
not failed now."

SIMON THE JESTER. Crown Svo. 6/-

*,* The central figure of Mr. Locke's new novel is one Simon de Gex, M.P.,
who having met life with a gay and serene philosophy is suddenly called upon to
face Death. This he does gallantly and jests at Death until he discovers to his
confusion that Destiny is a greater jester than he. Eventually by surrendering
his claims he attains salvation. The heroine is Lrola Brandt, an ex-trainer of
animals, and an important figure in the story is a dwarf. Professor Anastasiu9
Papadoponlas, who has a troupe of performing cats. The scene of the novel is
laid in London and Algiers.

THE GLORY OF CLEMENTINA WING. Crown Svo. 6/-

Obi^erver—" Mr. Locke's best. . . . Clementina Wing and Dr. Quixtus are the
two most adorable characters that Mr. Locke has ever brought together in holy
wedlock. The phrases are Locke's most debonairly witty."

*Also Bound in Cloth with Illustrated paper wrapper i/- net.

BY LAURA BOGUE LUFFMAN.

A QUESTION OF LATITUDE. Crown Svo. 6/-

*«* The autlior of " A Question of Latitude " takes an English girl from the
comfortable stateliness of a country house in the Old Country, and places her in a
rough and ready environment in Australia. The girl finds her standard of values
undergoing a change. She learns to distingui<;h between English snobbery and
Colonial simplicity and manliness, she also learns how to wash up dishes, and that
Australia is not all kangaroos and giant cricketers. The atmosphere of the story is
convincing, and there are many vivid pictures of Melbourne life. The book depicts
Australia as it really is, its strength and its weakness, its refinement and it*
vulgarity.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY A. NEIL LYONS.

ARTHUR'S. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Times—" Not only a very entertaining and amusing work, but a very kindly
and tolerant work also. Incidentally the work is a mirror of a phase ol the low
London life of to-day as true as certain of Hogarth's transcripts in the eighteenth
century, and far more tender."

Punch—" Mr. Neil Lyons seems to get right at the heart of things, and I
confess to a real admiration for this philosopher of the coffee-stall."

SIXPENNY PIECES. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Pall Mall Gazette—" It is pure, fast, sheer life, salted with a sense of humour."

Eveninr/ Standard— "' Sixpenny Pieces' is as good as 'Arthur's,' and that

is saying a great deal. A book full of laughter and tears and hits innumerable

that one feels impelled to read aloud. ' Sixpenny Pieces ' would be very hard

indeed to beat."

COTTAGE PIE. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*t* Mr. Lyons' former books dealt with East London characters. Now he
draws the varying types of a small coiintry community. The humour of the
whole is enforced, inimitable, and there is the underlying note ol tragedy never
v/holly absent from the lives of the poorer classes.

W. J. Locke, in Outlook—" . . . That book of beauty, truth, and artistry."
Edwin Pugh, in Outlook—" I have never missed an opportunity to express my
admiration for his inimitable talent."

CLARA; SOME CHAPTERS IN THE LIFE OF A HUSSY.

Crown 8vo. 6/-

Manchester Guardian — " Mr. Lyons writes about life in the slums with a
great deal of penetrative sympathy for human nature as it shows itself."

Daily Graphic—" Clara is a type, the real thing, and we know of no-one else
who could have created her."

BY ALLAN McAULAY.

THE EAGLE'S NEST, Crown 8vo. 6/-

Athenceum—" We should describe the book as a brilliant tour de force. . .
The story is spirited and interesting. The love interest also is excellent and
pathetic."

Spectator—" This is one of those illuminating and stimulating romances which
set people reading history."

BEGGARS AND SORNERS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*«* " Beggars and Sorners " is a novel which deals with what may be called the
back-wash of the " Forty Five." It commemorates the debacle of a great romance,
and in describing the lives, the struggles, the make-shifts, the intrigues and the
crimes of a small circle o! Jacobite exiles in Holland between the years 1745 and
1750, it strives to show the pathos of history while revealing its seamy side. The
characters are imaginary (with one important exception); they have imaginary
names and commit imaginary actions, for the story is not confined to, but only
founded on, fact. If some readers of Jacobite history find among their number
some old friends with new faces, this need not detract from the interest of others
to whom all the characters are new— actors in a drama drawn from the novelist's
fancy. To English readers it may have to be explained what the word Sorner
means— but the story makes this sufficiently plain. The novel is of a lighter
character than those previously written by this author, and it is not without
sensational elements. In spite of adverse circumstances, grim characters, and all
the sorrows of a lost cause, it contrives to end happily. The scene is laid in.
Amsterdam.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY KARIN MICHAELIS.

THE DANGEROUS AGE. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

Translated from the Danish.

This book has been :—

(1) Sold to the extent of 100 editions in 6 months in Germany.

(2) Translated into 11 languages.

(3) Translated into French by the great Marcel Prevost, -who says in his
Introduction to the English Edition—" It is the feminine soul, and the femininal
Boul of all that is revealed in these extraordinary documents. Here indeed is a
strajiga book."

ELSIE LINDTNER. A Sequel. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

THE GOVERNOR. Crown 8vo. 3/6 net

BY IRENE MILLER.

SEKHET. Crown Svo. 6/-

*,* Sekhet deals with that topio of unwearying interest to readers of romance —
the adventures and struggles of an exquisitely lovely woman upon whom the
hand of Fate is laid heavily. From the days of her beautiful girlhood when her
Guardian himself proves her tempter, Evarne has good reason to believe herself
one of the victims of " Sekhet," the ancient Egyptian Goddess of Ijove and Cruelty.
Even though the main theme of this story is the tragic outcome of a too passionate
love, portions of Evarne's experiences, such as those with the bogus Theatrical
manager, are full of humour, and throughout there is a relieving lightness of touch
in the writing. The book grows in interest as it proceeds, and the final portion —
a, long duel between Evarne and the evil genius of her life— is dramatic in the
extreme. The result remains uncertain till the last page or two, and though
decidedly ghastly is entirely original and unforeseen,

BY HECTOR H. MUNRO (Saki)

THE UNBEARABLE BASSINGTON. A Novel. Crown Svo. 6/-

*»* The keynote of this book is struck in an early chapter where one of the
school-masters at the school " Comus Bassington " is sent to, remarks, " There
are just a few, and Bassington is one of them, who are Nature's highly-finished
products. They are in the schoolboy stage, and we who are supposed to be
moulding raw material are quite helpless when we come in contact with them."
" Comus Bassington " has no father, and a mother of a very uncommon type.
After leaving school he runs loose for a time in London, bear-led a little by a
clever young M.P., falls in love with the most wonderful match of the season,
gets deeply in debt, and even when at the absolute end of his tether fascinates
the reader with his store of spontaneous gaiety.

Observer—" ANYONE COULD DINE out for a year and pass for a wit after
reading this book if only the hosts and the guests would promise not to read it
too. This is one of the wittiest books, not only of the year, but of the decade.
It is not even only witty; it has a, deepening humanity towards the end that
comes to a climax of really disturbing pathos. It will be a dull public that can
pass over such a book as this."

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION

BY HECTOR H. MUNRO {SaKD—coiititnied.

THE CHRONICLES OF CLOVIS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

English Beview — " A collection of short stories printed from various news-
papers and ma azines. Every one was worth reprinting, and some, notably ' The
Great Weep ' and ' Sredni Vashtar,' are very clever indeed. Mr. Munro conceals
pills of cleverness in a sugar-coating of wit— real wit— and the result is a chuckle
provoking book, except on the occasions when its author was touched to grim
realism and wrote his mood."

BY LOUIS N. PARKER

POMANDER WALK. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Author of "Rosemary," etc. With numerous Illustrations by

J. Scott Williams.

*,* Novelised by the author of the delightful play of the same name, which has
met with so much success both in England and the United States. A picture of
one of the quaint out-of-the-way corners of London of the olden times. The volume
contains a tinted frontispiece and title page, and numerous other charming
illustrations.

Daily Telegraph—" Mr. Parker has turned a delightful comedy into a still
more delightful story ... in every way a charming, happy romance, beautifully
told and irresistibly sentimental."

BY JOHN PARKINSON.

OTHER LAWS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* This book is distinctly the outcome of the latest " intellectual " movement
in novel-writing. The hero, Hawkins, is an African explorer. During a holiday in
England he falls in love with and captivates Caroline Blackwood, a woman of
strong personality. Circumstances prevent him from entering upon a formal
engagement, and he departs again for Africa, without proposing marriage. Caroline
and Hawkins correspond fitfully for some time; but then a startling combination
of events causes Hawkins to penetrate further and further into the interior; a
native village is burned, and a report, based apparently upon fact, is circulated
of his death. Not until seven months have elapsed is he able to return to England.
He finds Caroline married to a man who has found her money useful. Here the
story, strong and moving throughout, moves steadily to the close, describing
delicately and analytically the soul conflict of a man. and a woman, sundered and
separate, with a yearning for each other's love.

BY F. INGLIS POWELL.

THE SNAKE. Crown Svo. 6/-

*»* For countless generations the sou! of Peasant India has been steeped ia
weird, fantastic superstitions, some grotesque, some loathsome, all strangely
fascinating. Though the main theme of this story is the unhappy love of a
beautiful, evil woman, and the brutal frankness with which she writes of her
uncontrolled passions in her diary, yet the whole tale hinges on some of the most
gruesome superstitions of the East. This book should appeal to all who take an
interest in the strange beliefs— not d the educated classes— but ol the simple-
minded and ignorant peasants of Behar.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY F. J. RANDALL.

LOVE AND THE IRONMONGER. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Baily Telegraph—" Since the gay days when Mr. F. Anstey was writing his
inimitable series of humouroiis novels, v;e can recall no book oj purely farcical
imagination so full of excellent entertainment as this first effort of Mr. F. J.
Randall. ' Love and the Ironmonger ' is certain to be a success."

Times—" As diverting a comedy of errors as the reader is likely to meet with
for a considerable time."

Mr. Clement Shorter, in The Sphere—" I thank the author for a delightful
hour's amusement."

THE BERMONDSEY TWIN. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*** A humourous story of the reappearance of a twin brother, who is supposed
to be dead. Prosperous, respected, and well satisfied with himself, a suburban
tradesman is contemplating matrimony and the realisation of his ambitions, when
the twin brother appears. He is thrown into a state of panic, lor not only is
his fortune thus reduced by half and his marriage prospects endangered, but the
twin is to all appearance a disreputable character, whose existence threatens to
mar the tradesman's respectability. The good man's attempts to hide this
undesirable brother make amusing reading, and the pranks of the unwelcome twin,
serve to complicate matters, for the brothers are so much alike as to be easily
mistaken one for the other. The new arrival is really a man of integrity, his
depravity being assumed as a joke. Having played the farce out he is about to
" confess," when the tables are turned upon him by accident, and he is forced to
pay heavily for his fun in a series of humiliating adventures.

BY HUGH DE SELINCOURT.

A FAIR HOUSE. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Author of "A Boy's Marriage, " "The Way Things Happen,' "The

Strongest Plume."

*,* The outstanding idea of Mr. H.gh de S^lincourt's new novel is the
possibility of absolute love and confidence between father and daughter. It Is the
main thread of the story and all the incidents are subordinated to it. The book
falls naturally into three sections. The first opens with the birth of the daughter
end the deaih of the mother, the father's utter despair, until an idea comes to
him, to make the child his masterpiece and to see how much one human being can
mean to another. The second deals with the growth of the child from five to
fifteen. In the third, the girl becomes a woman. Her first experience of love is
unhappy and threatens to destroy the confidence between father and daughter.
But she is enabled to throw herself heart and soul into stage-work, and in the
excitement of work she finds herself again. And the end of the book leaves her
with the knowledge that one love does not necessarily displace another, and that a
eeoond, happier love has only strengthened the bond between her father and
herself.

BY ESSEX SMITH

WIND ON THE HEATH. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* No paragraph or descriptive note can give an idea of Miss Essex Smith's
story. It depends upon style, psychology, woodland atmosphere, and more than
anything else upon originality of outlook. It will make a direct appeal to that
public that has a taste for the unusual. There is underlying it a tone of passion,
the passion of a fantaatic Richard Jefferies.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY GEORGE STEVENSON.

TOPHAM'S FOLLY. A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*** This novel has the curious charm of a tale that might be told to you by
your own mother or grandmother, a homeliness and simplicity which is Dever
overweighted by the writer's very considerable skill in presenting his story. The
scene is laid in a small town in the West Riding oi Yorkshire — fortunately there
is practically no dialect. What the narrator presents to us is supposed to be the
incidents of the lives of various members of the Topham family and their kinsfolk
seeu largely through the eyes of Mary Ann. Mary Ann's mother was a woman
of good family, who in her early teens eloped with her father's groom, and although
in consequence of her act she endured many hardships, she never repented it.
When Mary Ann was just growing into young womanhood slie discovered an
advertisement in a newspaper enquiring for the heirs of Thomas Morton Bagster,
and pointed it out to her mother. They consult Mr. Topham, the lawyer, who
undertakes to make enquiries for them. Topham is at this time very short of
cash, and cannot complete a grand new house tor himself and his family, over
whom he rules as a petty domestic tyrant. From now on the financial fortunes
of the Tophams prosper, and the house, which has begun to be known as
" Topham's Folly," is completed and occupied. And in this tempestuous household
lives Mary Ann as a humble servant— a kind of angel in a print dress. When the
youngest boy is about twenty he suddenly discoTsrs by the purest chance the
whole fraud upon which the family fortunes have been erected. There are
innumerable side issues, every one of them fascinatingly human and delightfully
told.

BY HERMANN SUDERMANN.

THE SONG OF SONGS (Das Hohe Lied). Crown 8vo. 6/-

A new Translation by Beatrice Marshall.

*,* The first English translation of this work, published under the title of
" The Song of Songs," proved to be too American for the taste of the British
public, and was eventually dropped. But it was felt that the work was too great
an one not to be represented in the English language, and accordingly this entirely
new translation has been made, which it is hoped will fairly represent the wonderfiJl
original without unduly offending the susceptibilities of the British public. In
this colossal novel, Sudermann has made a searching and masterly study of feminine
frailty. The character and cai-eer of Lily Czepanck are depicted with such pitiless
power and unerring psychological insight, that the portrait would be almost
intolerable in its realism, if it were not for its touches of humour and tenderness.
In these pages too may be found some of Siidermann's most characteristic and
charming passages descriptive of counti-y life, while his pictures of Berlin Society
in all its phases, the glimpses he gives us into what goes on beneath the tinsel,
spick and span surface of the great modern capital are drawn with Tolstoyan
vigour and colour.

THE INDIAN LILY and other Stories. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Translated by Ludwig Lewisohn, M.A.

*»* A series of characteristic stories by the great German Master which exhibit
his art in every phase. Sudermann is chiefly known in this country as a writer
of novels and of plays, but this volume will place him in a new light for English
readers— as a writer of short stories of the first lank. In fact he may with justice
be termed the German Maupassant.

JOHN LANE'S LIST OF FICTION
BY SIR FRANK SWETTENHAM.

ALSO AND PERHAPS. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Author of " Unaddressed Letters," "British Malaya," etc.

Punch — " ' Dodo Island ' contains a long quotation of such genuine humour
that to have rescued it is an achievement in itself. Although in this sketch Sir
Frank apologises almost humbly for mentioning history in ' Tamarin ' and ' lie de
la Passe,' he becomes an historian unashamed, and a most attractive one. ' The
Kris Incarnadine ' provided me with a more grizzly sensation than I have been
able to conjure up for many years, and ' Disbelief in the Unfeen ' ought to be
read aloud daily to those obnoxious people who cannot bring themselves to believe
in aJiything that does not take place within a stone's throw of their parish pump."

BY MARCELLE TINAYRE.

THE SHADOW OF LOVE. Crown 8vo. 6/-

Translated from the French by A. R. AUinson, M.A.
•»* Of the newer French novelists Marcelle Tinayre is perhaps the best known.
Her work has been crowned by the French Academy, and she possesses a very large
public in Europe and in America. The story deals with a girl's love and a heroic
sacrifice dictated by love. " The Shadow of Love " is a book of extraordinary
power, uncompromising in its delineation of certain hard, some might say repulsive
fjicts of life, yet instinct all through with an exquisitely tender and beautiful
passion of human interest and human sympathy.

BY GEORGE YANE.

THE LIFTED LATCH: A Novel. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* " Tlie Lifted Latch " is a story of strong situations. The hero is the son
of an Italian attach^ and a girl of whose frailty he takes advantage. The mother
decides to hide her shame by handing the child over to a foster-mother together
with a sum of money for its maintenance. When the boy grows up he becomes by
a curious sequence of events and circumstances reunited to his parents, and a
series of plots and counterplots follow. The scene is set principally in diplomatic
circles in Rome.

THE LOVE DREAM. Crown 8vo. 6/-

*,* In this book we meet some Sicilians of old lineage and considerable wealth
settled in a gloomy manor in England. Tlie family consists of an aged and partly
demented Princess, obsessed by a monomania for revenge, her grandson, an attach^
of the Italian Embassy to the Court of St. .James, and his hall sister, a fascinating,
winnin?;. wayward and fickle creature. This girl captures the heart of Lord Drury—
whose father murdered the Principe Baldassare di Monreale — .son of t he old Princeso.
The contrast between the.se Southerners and their English neighbours is strongly
accentuated. Don Siorza and his half sister Donna Giacinta are no mere puppets
with Italian names; they give the render the impression of being people the author
has met and drawn from life. The tragedy in which they are involved strikes one
as inevitable. Poor Ix>rd Drury, in his utter inexperience, has taken a beautiful
chima;ra for reality and starts in the pursuit of happiness when it was all tJie
time within his grasp. The love-interest never flags to the last page when the hero's
troubles oome to an end. The glimpses of diplomatic circles iu London are
obviously not written by an outsider.

Truth—" Well constructed . . . thrilling scenes and situations fit naturally
and oon*equently into the framework of its elabor.ite plot."

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY
Los Angeles

This book is DUE on the last date stamped below.

FEB 16 1956

"ii^i"

d"S 291982
JUL 2 2 1982

MAR 71^3
'JUL 0 8 IQ""

9-1°

Form L9-25m-9,'47(A5618)444

THE IJBRART

UNIVEFv- ;"v^ ( ' CALIFORNIA.

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5236 Rolfe -

R2i la. his ovm

1901 imaee.

3 1158 00804 8166

EB 16195^

52?^6
R2i
1901

UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY

AA 000 367 296

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